One Thousand Eighty
by thepip
Summary: BOOK 7 SPOILERS! One thousand eighty is the amount of times Lily Evans has rejected James Potter in three years, four months, three weeks, and two days but who's counting? Is it possible that James may actually hear a yes after hearing that many no's? R
1. Mindless Twat

"The day I _willingly_ agree to date you, James Potter, I will skinny dip in the lake with the Giant Squid." Lily Evans shouted that into his ear on the last day of school. It was a kind of rejection he should be used to, if you looked at it statistically.

James Potter asked Lily Evans out about once a day during the school week and twice each weekend day. Average that out with about 10 months at school which leads to 200 weekday rejections and 160 weekend rejections, a grand total of 360 rejections. And that was in one year. If he tallied it up for all the times he'd asked her out starting from their fourth year together, it ran close to 1080 rejections. One thousand and eighty times he heard the word "no". Of course there were variations. James was certain Lily had begun to make a list of ways to reject him without saying "no". It would've been quite amusing but for the fact that he was in love with her.

Lily Evans would be the death of him, he thought to himself decidedly, whether he would die because of unreciprocated love or the plain psychosis of his mind it didn't matter. She would ultimately kill him.

James mussed his hair absentmindedly, rolling his eyes as he sat upon the comfortable maroon colored couch his mother had bought for him upon his admittance into Gryffindor House. His entire room had been converted into a Gryffindor adoration chapel, with its walls painted a warm gold and the Gryffindor emblem tattooed upon one of them. He rather delighted in his room, enjoying the glass case in which his most prized possession, a Nimbus 1972 (top of the line, of course), was held. The wooden floors, beautifully glossed dark oak wood, were covered by the warm rugs that his mother had special-ordered from an expensive shop in Diagon Alley. He balanced his eagle feather quill, a gift from his father, upon his right index finger. He kept it there for nearly a minute while he thought of what his next order of action was. He decided he was absolutely hopeless and a lost cause. And that prompted his thoughts of a certain red-haired soon-to-be-murderess.

It wasn't Lily Evans's fault that he liked her. It really hadn't been her choice at all. If she had had a choice, which she hadn't (as she had loudly proclaimed so many times in the hallways for everyone to hear, to his eternal shame), she never would have asked for James Potter to like her. She hadn't completely enjoyed the popularity it had thrust upon her, or the supposed social standing she held from it. Because of his unfortunate crush, Lily Evans could no longer avoid the general population's scrutiny, as she had before.

Prior to the crush, Lily had been a quiet and smart girl, speaking almost only in classes and refusing to engage in the battles of wit James and his best friends had held nearly every day. She wrote many letters, none of which James had managed to intercept, and spent a great deal of time in the library. She had a special pass from Professor Dumbledore enabling her to read everything there, to her never-ending delight. She had risen through the ranks of power, becoming a prefect in their mutual fifth year at their school, and relished the responsibility though it did not go to her head (much). In fact, to James's perpetual regret, she had been an altogether wholesome and happy girl without him. It was because of him her entire life was topsy-turvy.

Lily Evans could no longer roam the halls without being questioned about the whereabouts of James Potter—her supposed boyfriend. She had grown tired of answering the question and almost resorted to hexing the questioner into oblivion. The only thing that saved them from death had been her strict moral compass, which had been loosening as the questions grew more and more common. Her haven in the library was interrupted by the multitudes of boys who had flocked to gawk at her, their previously hidden adoration turned public as the most popular boy had admitted to all his feelings. She was no longer able to sit in the library and read in peace; instead she now sought quiet asylum in the Prefect's Room, which hadn't helped her much at all. Because all prefects had clearance to enter the room many decided to camp out there and watch as she struggled to focus on her books. When she was finally able to insert herself into the book she was often jolted out of it by the slam of a door or the raucous laughter of other prefects. In summary, it was utterly hopeless to be Lily Evans once James Potter announced her as his desired social queen.

James Potter was the co-ruler, one of four, of Hogwarts. The entire school, apart from the Slytherins, bowed down before them and worshiped them with almost godlike reverence. They called themselves Marauders and rarely did someone disagree with them. To disagree would be to bring upon one the wrath of a ruling party with the population's adoration. Only the Slytherins and Lily Evans had managed to do so, with only Lily ending unscathed.

The Marauders were not bad people, as many were quick to point out. They, quietly, helped those who needed it. In fact, their kindness was evident in the choosing on the fourth Marauder.

James Potter and his best friend, Sirius Black, had been friends from the age of three. Though Sirius's mother had tried desperately to separate the two, it was impossible. They had met one day in the broomstick store in Diagon Alley, examining a very expensive broomstick. They were inseparable from that moment on. Eight years later, almost to the day, they met the third member of their group.

Remus Lupin was a sandy haired boy with an overprotective mother and a well traveled father. He was extremely intelligent, neat, and a little shy. He had been sitting in the last train compartment, completely alone. He had taken out his favorite book and had begun to thumb through it when he was rather rudely interrupted.

"You're a twat, Potter." A somewhat tall brown haired boy said confidently.

"Not nearly as big of one as you if you think that the French can beat us at Quidditch." The boy with jet black hair and glasses that framed his bright blue eyes answered.

"It's not a matter of patriotism, idiot. It's all about strategy."

"It's all about how the French have never beaten us in anything, ever." The black haired boy finally noticed Remus. "Hello, I'm James Potter." He slid down onto one of the seats. "These aren't taken, are they?"

Remus shook his head. "They're free. I'm Remus Lupin."

"This idiot over here is Sirius Black. He thinks the French can beat us at Quidditch!" James glanced at Remus again. "You're magical, aren't you?"

"Yeah," Remus nodded, "I'm as magic as they come. The two of you are too, right?"

"'Course. With my mother anything but would have had me killed." Sirius Black said lightly. "She's as blood purist as they come."

"What house are yours hoping you'll get into?" Remus asked.

"Gryffindor, for sure." James grinned. "My mum and dad were both in it."

"Anything but Slytherin for me. Preferably Gryffindor, though." Sirius shrugged. "You?"

"Gryffindor as well."

After a brief pause, James and Sirius took up their argument about what team was better. It took about five seconds for Remus to join in and defend his country's flying skills alongside James.

Remus had, prior to this meeting, been prepared for complete isolation and silence. He had adapted to this, prepped for it, and was pleasantly shocked to find friends.

The fourth member of the Marauders was met in line for the Sorting, a rat-faced boy named Peter Pettigrew. He was shaking visibly as he watched the others be sorted. He had latched onto the threesome and had proved somewhat unshakable. Sirius merely rolled his eyes at Peter while James and Remus tried to make Peter feel comfortable. It was because of this kindness that Peter had begun to revere the Marauders. He was not one of them in skill or wit or comedy but, once he was accepted, he was in it for life. They were a brotherhood that no bonds could shake.

Of course, this was all before James Potter saw Lily Evans in their fifth year at Hogwarts. Lily, who had previously been rather skinny and small, had morphed into a stunning beauty. Her small frame had maintained its skinniness while growing curves in all of the right places. Her hair had changed from the bright red she had hated into dark auburn curls that were delightful to look at. Most of all, her emerald green eyes were accentuated by the eyeliner and mascara she had taken to wearing.

James saw her and she honestly took his breath away. He had waltzed over to her, reached out his hand, and asked her out. That began the lifetime of rejection.

James shook his head to clear it of the thoughts of the past. This year would be different, he had decided it already. He would finally get Lily Evans to date him. It would take time, yes, but it would happen. In fact, he had enlisted two of the greatest minds at Hogwarts (besides his, of course) to help him.

_**Mindless twat,**_

_**You are psychotic. There is no way in hell Lily Evans will ever date you.**_

_**-An Anonymous Well-wisher named Sirius Black**_

_**PS. I'm coming over to stay tomorrow. Parents are driving me insane. Regulus is a saint. I'm the devil. It's great.**_

That was the response his best friend had sent him after a long letter of desperation.

His other best friend had at least responded a bit kindlier.

**James,**

**Please seek help from someone other than me. I have no idea how the feminine mind works. Ask someone who dates a lot of them, like Sirius. Actually, on second thought, don't you dare ask Sirius. He'll probably give some mad advice, if any at all. Ask a girl. You do know a girl, don't you?**

**Best wishes,**

**Remus L.**

The problem was that James knew plenty of girls. Unfortunately they all wanted to date him and half of them had already dated Sirius.

James sank deeper into his couch, wallowing in self-pity, while Lily Evans, a mere one hundred miles away, did the same in a white rocking chair.

Lily Evans was depressed. It was almost her seventh year at Hogwarts and she hadn't a clue what to do with her life. She had spent nearly every day studying, working towards the goal of graduating with honors. However, once she graduated, she had absolutely no idea what to do with her life.

Her mother and father, God rest their souls, had died almost three years ago. She was supposed to live with her sister, Petunia, and her sister's awful husband, Vernon, until she reached the age of 18. Luckily for Lily, she wasn't one to follow _all_ the rules.

She was sitting in the attic of her newly found flat. She was technically supposed to be living with her sister but when she had first moved in, it was utterly unlivable. She was supposed to have spent her last two summers living there but she had found the prospect unbearable. Scrounging up her savings and calling on as many favors as she could, Lily had managed to travel during her summers.

She had spent the summer before her fifth year living in Paris, in Montmartre. The apartment she had managed to let was beautiful, the walk up not so much. It was the fifth floor of a building that looked directly at Paris. It was because of all the steps that Lily had managed to rent it for an extremely reasonable sum of 10 pounds a month.

The summer before her sixth year had been spent in Krakow, Poland. She had learned Polish from a nanny when she was little and so had spent many happy days living in on the first floor of an old apartment building. Her flat had looked out onto a cobblestone street and was decorated with an adorable wrought iron bed. She had loved that flat and that city.

This summer she had tried to decide where to go but instead chose to stay in London. She had found an adorable attic flat in the center for a very reasonable price. It was only one room with a bathroom and had been extremely ugly when she found it. However, it only took a few well placed waves of her wand to beautify it. She had added a small stove and icebox, painted white with lovely flowers stenciled onto it. She had built in shelves by wand, filling them with her books. She had copied her black wrought iron bed and placed it in a corner, covered with a gorgeous yellow comforter with white pillows. The walls she had painted pale blue and in the center of the floor, beneath the wooden table she ate and studied upon, was a beautiful circular rug with colors that mimicked her room. There were pictures adorning her walls from her travels, small knickknacks she had found along the way. Her trunk, which her parents had bought her upon her admittance, stood empty beneath one of the windows she washed diligently by hand once a week. She adored her room and its position as her safe haven.

Her kitten purred as it sat in her lap, her small kitty she called Monty after the place in Paris she had found it. It was obviously a magical cat, never growing from the size she had found it as. Monty was her best friend.

"Oh Merlin, Monts, what am I going to do?" Lily asked, stroking his fur coat. "I'm so screwed."

James echoed the sentiment.


	2. Greatest Marauder

**_Prongsie, _**

**_Listen mate, you need to snap out of this lovesick thing you've got going on. I understand that Lily Evans is the love of your life but it's our last year at Hogwarts and we've got to go out with a bang, yeah? _**

**_So here're my ideas for the first (of many, many) prank: _**

**_-Since I think that summer should be prolonged, why not fill the Great Hall up with sand and have an oceanic scene going on? _**

**_-Make everyone who enters the Great Hall change into bathing suits. _**

**_-Except the Slytherins. We don't want to see the slimy gits in their suits. I suggest we dress them more appropriately, as in watermelon suits. Big gigantic watermelon suits that ooze seeds the moment they walk through the halls. _**

**_What do you say? Add in any ideas you have. We need more! I wrote Moony and Wormtail but Remus has been ill lately so I don't know when he'll reply. _**

**_Sour confessions late, _**

**_The one and only Sirius Black _**

_Padfoot, _

_Lily is here to stay, as is my eternal love. Merlin that sounds mawkish (that's a word my neighbor, Evelyn, taught me recently. She's studying for her A-levels. I'm to introduce you to her as soon as I can. She's got quite a crush on you.)! _

_Your ideas were good. _

_My ideas… _

_-Liked the beach idea. We need to get the teachers too, though. I suggest making McGonagall wear a hot pink and lime green striped bathing suit and Dumbledore a pair of orange trunks. _

_-The watermelon is definitely a nice touch. We could get the house elves to spice up the food, too, changing it into a luau! _

_-The Sorting Hat's song. That needs to be changed. _

_-Charm the statues to wear bathing suits too, along with all the fellows in the chain mail… their name I don't remember… dammit what are they called? Suits of armor! Yeah, them. Charm them to wear bathing suits. _

_Sour confessions late, _

_The one and only-est Prongs _

**_James, _**

**_You have issues, mate. That's all I'm saying. _**

**_Pranks, sound good. We'll do the beach and the suit of armor crap. _**

**_Sour confessions late, _**

**_The cool one, Padfoot _**

_Paddy, _

_I have issues? What about you? Speaking of which, how goes the home life? _

_Prank done. Wrote to Remus and Peter. Remus replied. Peter's AWOL. _

_Sour confessions late, _

_The coolest Marauder, James _

**_James, _**

**_Yes, you're the one with issues. _**

**_Home life is terrible, naturally. As if mother dearest would be content with me being a Gryffindor. Ha. She loves that Regulus is a Slytherin. Damn it sucks. But I've got my new flat. Uncle Alphard died and left me a hell of a lot of money so I bought a flat. It's great. I got it decorated. _**

**_I've been talking to this girl, Mary Macdonald. She's mates with your Lily and I'll snoop some for you, I suppose. _**

**_In fact, being the amazingly good looking and loyal chap that I am, I've already asked a few questions. I've managed to find out that Lily lives near me here in London. A few streets away in an attic flat. She spends her summers abroad, traveling. She lived in Krakow last summer and Paris the one before. She's mad about traveling, that one. She also loves her kitten, Monty? I don't know how it got its name but it's magic and never gets bigger than it is, which is kitten-sized. I'm to meet with her soon since Mary wants to see her. Why not tag along, mate? _**

**_Remus is having a great time in Surrey, isn't he? He wrote me about some girls he met. Petey's AWOL but what else is new? _**

**_Sour confessions late, _**

**_The amazing Sirius Black _**

_Sirius, _

_I haven't got any issues. Well. Okay. One. Lily. But whatever. _

_Home life sucks, then. Sorry. Come stop by soon. Mum's mad with worry about you alone in your flat. She's still convinced that we're little five year-olds who need nannies. Though I wouldn't say no to my last one… remember her? Bloody gorgeous she was. Francesca was her name. _

_Lily lives nearby? I'm planning a visit as I write. I've got the house-elves packing for me so I'll be by the day after I send this. Mum's not too happy but this is true love! Not you, Lily. _

_Mary Macdonald. I know who you're talking about. She's definitely hot. She's Lily's best mate though? Didn't know that. Guess I haven't been studying her all too well after all. _

_Moony wrote me about the girls. He's mad about one of them, Paz Safford. Thinks she's the best thing alive. He's so wrong. It's definitely Lily. _

_Sour confessions late, _

_The best person ever, James Potter _

_Moony! _

_We're writing you together, Sirius and me. I've got the quill first though. _

_I'm staying at his flat and you need to get over here ASAP. The girls are gorgeous, though I'm only interested in one… _

_Speaking of her, I saw her yesterday! I was walking down a street—**Hi Moony! Sorry to interrupt but Prongs is lying. Not some street, it was Lily Evans's street and he knew it!!**—Whatever. It doesn't matter. The point is, I saw her and went absolutely mad. The exchange went down like this. _

_Lily (L): What are you doing here? _

_Me (M): Walking. That's allowed, isn't it? This isn't Hogwarts that you control. _

_L: (glares, speechless with anger) _

_M: (speechless with shame) _

_L: (glares and turns to leave) _

_M: Wait! Sorry Evans. I didn't mean to sound like a prat back there. _

_L: (stops but doesn't speak) _

_M: The real answer is I'm visiting Sirius. He lives a few streets back. _

_L: (stops glaring) _

_M: Do you live near here or are you visiting someone? _

_L: I'm visiting my boyfriend. He's on the English Quidditch team. (she points to a flat that's houses a guy who's even better looking than me, if you can imagine it!) _

_M: Oh… who is he? _

_L: Bartholomew Gasquick. _

_M: (I was shocked beyond belief and didn't say anything. Sirius hadn't mentioned a boyfriend who I'd heard of!) That's… interesting… _

_L: Heard of him, have you? _

_M: (nods pitifully) _

_L: Well I'd best be getting off. He worries when I'm gone too long. Something about not getting to enjoy the more pleasurable fifteen minutes in life while I'm away. (smiles impishly) See you around. _

_M: (glued firmly to the spot) Bye Evans. _

_L: (smiles again) Bye. (walks across the street before turning around) I was only kidding, Potter. _

_M: About what? _

_L: It's more than fifteen pleasurable minutes. _

_M: I'm not interested in the details of your life, Evans. _

_L: Really? That's why you've walked this street nearly a dozen times today? _

_M: I was lost. _

_L: Lost. Right. Okay. _

_M: (not responding. Besides, we were yelling across the street.) _

_L: (sighing quite loudly since I heard her.) _

_M: Have a good summer. _

_L: You too. _

_M: (I started to walk away but I changed my mind and crossed the street to stand near her.) You aren't really dating Bartholomew Gasquick, are you? _

_L: Thought you didn't care? _

_M: I lied. _

_L: I suppose I'll throw you a bone since you've yet to ask me out today. Quite well done, by the way. (sighs again. Merlin she's gorgeous!) _

_M: (waiting) _

_L: (nothing) _

_M: (still waiting) _

_L: (still nothing) _

_M: Well? _

_L: (walks into the doorway and opens the door. Steps through the door and turns around.) Have a great holiday, Potter. (closes the door.) _

_I swear to every single god out there that she will be the end of me. I about had a heart attack when she added that bit about the fifteen minutes, or more. Merlin, she's quite a devil. But a stunningly gorgeous one. _

_Oh wait. Sirius wants to write. _

**_Hello again, Moony. I decided you need my commentary on the exchange. _**

_Lily (L): What are you doing here? **(She thinks you're a stalker.) **_

_Me (M): Walking. That's allowed, isn't it? This isn't Hogwarts that you control.** (James attempts suaveness, unsuccessfully.)** _

_L: (glares, speechless with anger)** (Well placed anger.)** _

_M: (speechless with shame)** (Such a baby, this one. Where have all my lessons gone? Has he forgotten EVERYTHING I taught him?!?)** _

_L: (glares and turns to leave) **(Rightly so, love.)** _

_M: Wait! Sorry Evans. I didn't mean to sound like a prat back there.** ("Au contraire, Lilykins. I'd love to marry you and have you bear a billion of my babies. Unfortunately, you hate my guts.")** _

_L: (stops but doesn't speak) **(Merlin she must be stupid to stop for you, mate.)** _

_M: The real answer is I'm visiting Sirius. He lives a few streets back. **("I'm also stalking you.")** _

_L: (stops glaring)** (Her eyes have begun to hurt from all of it, I bet.)** _

_M: Do you live near here or are you visiting someone?** (Curiosity killed the cat but saved the mice. I made the last bit up, I think.)** _

_L: I'm visiting my boyfriend. He's on the English Quidditch team. (she points to a flat that's houses a guy who's even better looking than me, if you can imagine it!)** (Yes, better looking that James. But not me! I'm the superior one!)** _

_M: Oh… who is he?** (More curiosity. Digging his own grave. Isn't it love fun?) **_

_L: Bartholomew Gasquick.** (Bloody hell, I've heard of him!)** _

_M: (I was shocked beyond belief and didn't say anything. Sirius hadn't mentioned a boyfriend who I'd heard of!) That's… interesting…**("Oh Lily! What happened to bearing my children?!?"** _

_L: Heard of him, have you?** (Obviously rubbing it in.)** _

_M: (nods pitifully)** (When isn't Prongsie pitiful?) **_

_L: Well I'd best be getting off. He worries when I'm gone too long. Something about not getting to enjoy the more pleasurable fifteen minutes in life while I'm away. (smiles impishly) See you around.** (Fifteen minutes? Only?)** _

_M: (glued firmly to the spot) Bye Evans.** ("Oh please Lily, don't go! I love you! Marry me! Now! Come on! Let's steal a broomstick and fly to Vegas!")** _

_L: (smiles again) Bye. (walks across the street before turning around) I was only kidding, Potter.** (Throws him a bone, she does.)** _

_M: About what?** (Digging that darn grave even deeper.)** _

_L: It's more than fifteen pleasurable minutes.** (Told you! Never ask!)** _

_M: I'm not interested in the details of your life, Evans.** ("Ahem, I love you but even for me that's too much information.")** _

_L: Really? That's why you've walked this street nearly a dozen times today?** (She's insightful, that one!)** _

_M: I was lost.** (Liar, liar, liar!)** _

_L: Lost. Right. Okay.** (This girl's smart, gotta hand it to her.)** _

_M: (not responding. Besides, we were yelling across the street.)** (He didn't know what to say more like.)** _

_L: (sighing quite loudly since I heard her.)** (She's an angry sigher. I noticed that in class.)** _

_M: Have a good summer.** (Quite witty, isn't he Moony?)** _

_L: You too.** (Same on her.)** _

_M: (I started to walk away but I changed my mind and crossed the street to stand near her.) You aren't really dating Bartholomew Gasquick, are you?** (Again with the questions!)** _

_L: Thought you didn't care?** ("I'm quite pleased that you do, secretly of course.")** _

_M: I lied.** (Honesty's the right policy.)** _

_L: I suppose I'll throw you a bone since you've yet to ask me out today. Quite well done, by the way. (sighs again. Merlin she's gorgeous!) **(See, a girl after my own heart! Bones!)** _

_M: (waiting)** (Wait for it.)** _

_L: (nothing)** (Wait for it!)** _

_M: (still waiting)** (Keep waiting for it!)** _

_L: (still nothing) **(Keep on!)** _

_M: Well? **(Almost there!)** _

_L: (walks into the doorway and opens the door. Steps through the door and turns around.) Have a great holiday, Potter. (closes the door.)** (And none. Brilliant exit, I must admit. She's quite good at this.)** _

**_Well there you have it, Remus lad. With the wisest and hottest Marauder's input. _**

**_Since you asked ages ago about how me and Mary were doing, I figured I should let you know. It's going bloody brilliant! She's gorgeous and funny and actually makes me chase her. She's not like the other girls who just sat around and waited for me to notice them. No, she doesn't want me to notice her half the time! Tell me that's not amazing. _**

**_Listen mate, I gotta run. James is smashing his head against the wall in teenage angst about Lils. He's besotted. _**

**_Sour confessions late, _**

**_Padfoot_**_and Prongs (the greatest Marauder around, ever!) _


	3. Dexterous Rebellions

"Dear God I'm sick of my family." Mary Macdonald sighed. "It's been a bloody long holiday."

Lily looked at her curiously from her seat in the Head's Compartment. "Really? Mine went by quickly."

"Aye but you didn't have nine sisters around." Mary rolled her eyes. "It's terrible. There's always someone around. Even here! Of course Carling and Fay need nannies. For heaven's sake, they're in Hogwarts. I'm not here to watch them!"

The third girl in the compartment, a pretty blonde, nodded sagely. "Trust me, I know. My mam was the same way when I started Hogwarts. She was always going on to Donnelly about how he was meant to watch out for me. Poor Donnelly nearly went mad." Marlene McKinnon finished.

Lily didn't say anything. She would've loved to have siblings who cared about her. It was hard to listen without commenting but to comment would have meant to draw attention to herself and that she didn't want.

"So Lily, how was your fast-paced holiday?" Marlene asked, pushing back a strand of her long black hair.

"Oh, it was good. Lovely, really. I spent it in London." She glanced at Mary. "I saw Mary a few times. Her and Sirius actually." Lily winked at her.

"Oh la la? A new couple, have we?" Marlene wiggled her eyebrows at Lily. "How lovely."

"Quite." Lily grinned as Mary grew red.

"I'm NOT dating Sirius Black!" She very nearly shouted.

"And what a pity that is," a voice drawled.

Lily looked at the open compartment door and saw the people she had wanted most to avoid.

"We can remedy that, love." Sirius Black winked at Mary, who became even redder.

Mary rolled her eyes but allowed him to sit beside her and place an arm on the seat behind her.

"How're you all?" James Potter walked in and leaned against the door. Instantly the compartment felt smaller. James had that presence, the one that filled up a room. Sirius had filled it considerably but with James there, it overflowed. Personality abounded, practically leaping out the windows. It only left a little room for his other best friends, who stood on either side of him. Remus stood with a dignified grin while Peter looked a bit silly, really. He had his shirt splattered with chocolate and his hair, obviously attempting to have the same kind of messy-sexy look James's did, was not cooperating.

"Even better now that you're here," Marlene said almost flirtatiously, even though she didn't mean it. She had no feelings towards James besides the obvious physical attraction. But just because she thought he was good-looking didn't mean she fancied him. In fact, it was quite the opposite. He was practically her brother.

"My presence does tend to light things up," James smiled as he slipped neatly into the seat between Lily and Marlene. "How's your mum?"

"Oh Mam's as crazy as ever. She was so mad at you this summer, though, for not coming to visit. She said the house felt so empty without you and the Marauders pranking us." Marlene turned to smile at Remus, who had sat down on her other side. "How've you been, Remus?"

Remus grinned at her. "Good, how about you?"

"Just darling. I do wish you guys would've come over though. Donnelly's so busy with his new girlfriend that he hasn't the time to prank back anymore. I got sooo tired of pranking alone."

"You should've written, genius." Remus replied teasingly.

Lily watched the conversations unfold before her as she waited for James to speak.

"Have a nice summer with old Barty then?" James asked after a moment's pause.

Lily glared at him again. "Delightful."

"I'm sure. Were you down in the south of France by chance? Because I saw him there… with some blonde girl. I didn't think you'd dye your hair for him but I mean, it had to have been you." James smiled.

Lily bit her lip. "Of course it was me. Told you we're dating, didn't I?"

"He must've confused the names then. He told me he was there with a girl called Veronica. But I'm sure it was just confusion, the sun talking. He was tan, that one."

She didn't reply.

"Bit mad, he was. He kept going on and on about Veronica. He said the only Evans he knew was a girl who lived in the flat next door. What was it he called her? 'A lovely little girl'."

"What the bloody hell are you doing, following him to the south of France? Trying to stalk me?" Lily demanded.

"Don't flatter yourself, Evans. I wouldn't bother to stalk you. I was in the south of France with my mum and dad, not that it's any of your business, on holiday."

"Oh."

"Besides, why were you lying about dating Bartholomew Gasquick?"

Lily turned away from him, blushing bright red. Why the hell had she shot her mouth off when she met him on the street? Then, she decided to take a different approach. "I figured it'd get you to finally leave me the hell alone," she said a bit angrily.

"Well lying doesn't solve anything, now does it?" James smiled at her, attempting to lighten the mood. He looked at her robes and spoke again. "Nice badge there, Evans."

Lily looked over at Remus. "Where's his?" She asked.

James grinned. "He hasn't got one."

"Then how are you in here?" She looked confused. James thought she never looked cuter in her life.

"Because I've got the badge." He pulled it out of his pocket.

"What?!?" Lily shouted, interrupting the conversation around her. When she noticed all the strange looks she was getting, she explained. "Potter's Head Boy."

There was no shouting, no yells of astonishment. No one fainted. Lily was quite disappointed with their reactions. All they did was roll their eyes and continue their conversations. Useless group of people.

"Is Dumbledore lacking a few brain cells? Smoked a few too many 'herbal' cigarettes?" Lily asked incredulously.

James shook his head. "Not that I know of. He doesn't smoke."

Lily gasped. "So you really are Head Boy?"

"That's what the badge says." James changed his mind. She looked even more amazing now, with a small smile crossing her face quickly before flickering away.

"You're… you're… you're…"

"Head Boy," James supplied helpfully. "I know."

"But… but…" Lily stuttered.

James sighed. "I'm Head Boy, Evans. That's all there is to it."

Lily shook her head as if clearing it. "It can't be…" she trailed off when she realized she was being repetitive and looked foolish. If there was one thing she couldn't stand it was appearing foolish before people.

James took her pause as something good. He felt it on the tip of his tongue, the desire to ask her out. Maybe 1080 rejections were her limit?

Lily noticed the pause. "Oh don't you dare go and ruin the first conversation we've ever had, Potter. Don't you dare ask me out." Lily said. "Any brownie points you may have earned would be completely killed, thrown out."

James bit his tongue. "No, no. I wasn't going to ask you out…" he trailed off. So close to 1081. Thank goodness she had stopped him from yet another rejection.

Rejection had been something new for him. Well mostly any experience with Lily Evans turned out to be a new one for him. He was used to being sought after, wanted. Girls tended to flock towards him and his mates. It wasn't that the Marauders, as they called themselves, tried to get attention of the opposite gender. Well apart from Peter. Peter Pettigrew was the only one who had trouble attracting the girls. And James, now. But that was only when he was dealing with Lily Evans. Any other girl would be falling at his feet. But maybe that was part of her charm?

He let the conversation between them lag as he began to think, engrossing himself in his thoughts about her. What was it exactly about her he liked?

He studied her as she pulled out her books, reading some book that faintly resembled Gone with the Wind. He didn't bother to ask her about it, instead welcoming the silence.

She had pulled her hair back in anticipation of reading. It was now in a messy ponytail, tied with a white ribbon. Her robes were perfectly pressed. Her face was dotted with freckles, tiny ones that added character in the opinion of anyone but the owner. Her green eyes, frog-green, were engrossed in the book. Looking at her took his breath away.

Lily felt James Potter staring at her but didn't feel like battling with him. She shrugged her shoulders a little as she read but didn't give much thought to it, allowing the book to lure her in.

It was a magic novel, one very closely resembling Gone with the Wind. It was about a woman named Arden the Fiery who had survived a myriad of troubles after the Dexterous Rebellions of 1721. It was a very interesting book, one that drew Lily in from the moment she had spotted it in Obscurus Books.

Peter Pettigrew watched his best friends, conversing with the girls. It was harder for him, the quieter one. He didn't have that trademark Marauder charm, the charm the others operated upon. Even quiet Remus had some, flirting like he was with Marlene McKinnon. Sirius was on his way to yet another girlfriend, this time in the form of Miss Mary Macdonald. It would be a miracle if either of those girls looked at him with anything but pity in their eyes. Of course the pity wasn't obvious. It was disguised a bit, tarnished at the edges, but still pity nonetheless. What he wouldn't give to have those girls look at him with the same admiration the others got.

"So I've been thinking…" Sirius began.

"Uh oh, hope you haven't hurt the few cells you've left!" Mary teased.

"Thinking is bad for you, Sirius. Remember what the doctor said?" James added.

Sirius gave them both a pointed look. "May I continue?" He growled.

Mary smiled and nodded. James spoke. "Go right ahead, Paddy."

Sirius cleared his throat. "Ahem, as I was saying before I was so _rudely_ interrupted. I've been thinking lately about what a wonderful thing pancakes are. Is there a better breakfast food out there? Really. I think not."

"Oh but there is." Remus said conspiratorially.

Sirius leaned forward. "This I must hear."

"It's called _French toast_!"

Sirius guffawed. "French toast?"

James shook his head. "Now that's where you're both wrong. The best breakfast food is definitely scrambled eggs. Now that's what I call good."

Mary rolled her eyes. "You clearly haven't had a chance to eat eggs properly. The best way is over-easy."

"Nope," Marlene argued, "it's hardboiled."

Lily shook her head at the conversation. She could hardly believe it as they continued to debate the merits of each food. She zoned out but occasionally, she couldn't help but hear snippets of the conversation.

"THEY'RE SOGGY!" Sirius screamed.

"Not if you do them _properly_." Mary replied calmly.

"You're WRONG!"

"No Paddy, you are." This was by James.

"Shut it, Prongs."

"Eggs are best!" James began to yell.

Sirius covered his ears with his hands. "I refuse to listen to this blasphemy." He began to chant. "PANCAKES! PANCAKES! PANCAKES!"


	4. Pirates Ahoy!

"Well James, congratulations are in order." Remus Lupin said to him.

James looked up from his position of lying on the Gryffindor Tower floor. "What are you going on about?"

"You've obviously managed to change enough to have a civil conversation with Lily. That's a feat."

James rolled his eyes. "A civil conversation is all I can get."

"It's something, mate." Sirius said cheerfully. "Besides, the prank went well, don't you think?"

James nodded, calling up the memory of the laughter that had erupted once everyone walked into the Great Hall.

Girls were instantly clad in tiny bikinis that magically accentuated every asset. The boys all wore a pair of swimming trunks that glowed neon in the dark. The suits of armor had tiny Gryffindor print bikinis.

James had gasped when he saw how amazing Lily looked her suit. He had to force himself to look away, to pay attention while Professor Dumbledore (clad in a pair of blue and white striped swimming trunks) spoke. The food, which the Marauders had planned carefully, was of no use to him; he couldn't even appreciate the beauty of the prank when he was so near (okay, she was nearly a dozen seats down but still) _her_.

He was rudely brought back to the moment by a smack upon his head. "What was that for?" He asked, rubbing it.

"To bring you back to earth, mate." Sirius answered. "Stop dreaming of Lily. We've got Quidditch plans to coordinate."

James grinned. This he could do. Besides Lily, Quidditch was his favorite thing.

"Brief me on the stats," James ordered, enjoying his new status as Captain.

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Someone's got a big head," he muttered before taking a piece of parchment from Remus. "We've Leoma Mountjoy as Keeper. Keane Wiswall and me as Beaters. And then there's Sennett Van Rensselaer and you as Chasers so we need a Seeker and another Chaser." Sirius glanced up at James.

James sighed. "I think we need tryouts for each position. We need some new blood."

Sirius nodded. "Yeah. Keane's getting a bit kooky in his flying. I think he took one too many bludgers to the head."

"He got hit by twelve during the last match." Peter supplied from his corner. He noticed the surprised looks. "What? I was doing the stats for the last captain."

James shrugged. "Keep doing them, Petey. But we do need to hold tryouts. When do you suppose would be best?"

"Saturday would work." Remus said, glancing at the calendar in his notes. "It's the week before…" he trailed off but it didn't matter. The others knew what he was alluding to.

"Saturday it is," James grinned. "Petey, be a pal and post some notices up, will ya? I've got to get this thing off the ground. What's today?"

"Thursday," Sirius said helpfully.

James's eyes looked panicked for a moment before giving way to excitement. "Remus, you'll have to help me choose."

Remus rolled his eyes. "Not so demanding, Prongs." He said. "But yes, I'll help you decide."

"Am I to try out too?" Sirius looked at him innocently.

James nodded. "Sorry mate but I've got to be fair. I don't want to be accused of playing favorites."

"I surmised as much," Sirius sighed. He looked gloomy for a moment before cheering up. "Why not ask the girls to try out? I bet they can all fly."

James scratched his head thoughtfully. "Could be useful…" He didn't bother to finish his statement. He jumped up off of the floor and ran to book the Quidditch pitch. Then, he waited in delicious anticipation for the tryouts.

---

It was a rare and sunny Saturday, the clouds shading the sun perfectly. James grinned as he walked out to the pitch to look upon the new recruits.

He looked them over before barking out, "Who here is a first year?"

A few hands were raised sheepishly.

"You'll have to leave the pitch," he said, not unkindly, "First years aren't allowed on House teams."

The first years walked dejectedly off the field and onto the stands, where they joined the other bystanders. It surprised James how many people had actually turned out for the tryouts. Besides the former team there was a whole slew of people (mostly girls) sitting in the stands watching.

"So everyone who was on the team last year stand over here. I'll need you to assist in these tryouts." James watched as Leoma Mountjoy and Sennett Van Rensselaer walked over to him. "Where's Keane Wiswall?" He asked.

"He quit. Says he hasn't enough time and needs to study for his O.W.L.s. And he's got a girlfriend." Leoma said obligingly. She was a slight girl of Greek descent. Her hair was cut extremely short and framed a rather prominent nose.

"Bloody hell. Alright then, Sirius you'll have to help me with the Beater tryouts." James said to his friend. "That's what we'll do first."

James spent the next hour watching Beaters fly and hit the bludgers between them. He had them set off in pairs, hitting back and forth. It was a hard task to manage with so many people on the field but after a while he found a pair that worked well.

"Alan Sutton and Pamela Sidney! Into the stands. Black! Come here! The rest of you wait a moment!" James shouted.

Sutton grinned at him and walked off the pitch while Sirius came towards him. Pamela gave him a flirty look, which he ignored.

"Who did you fly well with?" James asked quietly.

Sirius thought for a moment. "Paz Safford was pretty good. She kept the bludgers decently between us and had good aim."

James nodded. "That's what I thought." He shouted again. "Safford! Grab a seat in the stands!"

Paz Safford was a gorgeous mix of Hispanic and English blood. Her skin was tanned to perfection with long and thick dark locks that fell down her shoulders. Besides being a brilliant Beater, she would manage to distract their opponents for at least a little while. It was no wonder Remus had had a crush on her during the summer.

"Chasers and Keepers up!" James set each Keeper at one of the three goals at either end. He gave each one ten minutes to deflect as many goals as the potential Chasers could throw. Then, he sat back with his two advisors to watch.

"Finn Oswald is good," Remus said quietly.

James shook his head. "He's good at aiming but watch him when we have him fly with the bludgers and everything. I've got a feeling he won't be good."

"What about Leola Mackenzie? She's good." Sirius suggested, watching her closely. "She's a decent Keeper."

James nodded. "But is she better than Leoma?"

"That's the question." Remus said. "Why not call them both down and see how it goes with the mock game?"

"That's what I'll have to do, I suppose." James watched for another moment as the last round of Keepers came up. "Alright, suppose it's time to choose," he said to his friends. "Oye you all! Listen up! Leoma Mountjoy, Leola Mackenzie, into the stands as Keepers. Sennett Van Rensselaer, Mary Macdonald, Marcella Lewes, Liam Georgy, and Nolan Heaton as Chasers! Seekers up!"

James watched as a decidedly tired looking group of people walked up. He tried not to grimace as he watched them fly. There was maybe, maybe, one or two decent ones.

"Prongs, you might have to fly Seeker this year," Remus paused as he watched two of the potential Seekers narrowly avoid crashing into each other.

Sirius nodded. "They're bloody awful."

James didn't reply. He stared at them, hoping to find someone. When he realized there really was _no one_ that was even remotely as good as him, he sighed. "Rossa Scully as Seeker into the stands." He picked the one that flew the best. He looked around for a minute. "Is Mirabelle Gilmour still here?" There were a few nods. "Go over to the Chasers. The rest of you can hit the showers or sit around. We're only going to try some mock matches to see how everyone flies together." James pointed. "Mountjoy, Macdonald, Georgy, Heaton, Scully, Sutton, and Sidney… team B. The rest of you, team A. Suit up and be back here in five." James gave Remus a quick look. "Please tell me which ones are decent," he practically begged.

Remus nodded as James and the others walked off the pitch.

James watched from his vantage point above the others. He was playing Seeker and watching the others. As he thought, Paz Safford and Sirius really worked well together. Much better than any of the other arrangements he had tried. He focused as Leoma Mountjoy let in a goal. He bit his lip to refrain from shouting at her. It was the easiest block in the world. Was it possible she had lost her edge? On the other side Leola Mackenzie hadn't let a single goal in. He had made the Chasers switch teams, even insisted on taking the Quaffle in himself a few times. Leola had blocked better, that was all there was to it. Now the Chasers were another story. Mirabelle Gilmour worked alright with Macdonald and Georgy but terribly with the others. Heaton was the easiest to work with, by far. Van Rensselaer had the most talent. He'd have to be put on the team. Now what about the others?

After another two hours of flying, James called the others down to the ground. The sun was beginning to set, his tryouts running much longer than had been expected.

"So the final list is: Keeper Leola Mackenzie; Chasers Nolan Heaton, Sennett Van Rensselaer, and Mary Macdonald; Beaters Sirius Black and Paz Safford. I'll be Seeker this year." James looked at everyone. "Thanks to everyone who tried out." He turned and walked tiredly away from them all, away from the joy of those who made it.

Sirius and Remus caught up to him quickly. "You alright there?" Remus asked with a concerned look.

"I'm fine," James replied. "I'm tired, that's all."

"We've got some real finds though," Sirius said excitedly. "Mackenzie's going to be great. Heaton too. And Safford's so bloody gorgeous she'll distract anyone."

James nodded without speaking, listening to Sirius and Remus chatter on and on about the new players as they entered the locker room. They even shouted to one another over the din of the showers. They were still talking about it as they went to bed.

He pulled the curtains around his bed tightly, trying not to read to deeply into his lack of interest in his team. He was extremely tired from choosing from the crowds. It took nearly an hour but at last, sleep arrived.

---

"Good morning, Miss Evans." James Potter said, pulling off his pirate's hat and bowing. He was walking into the Great Hall when he spotted her.

Wait. Why did he have a pirate's hat? "What's with the hat?" Lily asked pointedly.

"Why it's National Pirate's Day!" James shouted gleefully.

Lily looked at him and laughed. He had replaced his black school robes with a swashbuckling shirt and a pair of pantaloons. "Lovely." She giggled.

"Oh but where's your spirit?" He looked at her. "Let me help you!" James waved his wand and Lily's eyes widened as she spun around a few times.

Her robes, in the spinning, had disappeared and left her in a large and rather ruffle-y dress. "What's with the outfit?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well it's Pirate's Day, duh." James shook his head sadly, wondering how she could so easily forget such an important fact.

Lily rolled her eyes and turned away from him, biting into her toast. She didn't have to look around to know that everyone else had probably been changed into pirates too.

James plopped down into the seat beside her. "Coming to the game today?" He asked excitedly.

Lily shrugged.

"Come on, you can't skip out on your House! It's our chance to flatten Hufflepuff. And our team is pretty great, thanks to yours truly."

It was the wrong ending. Lily had been telling him she'd go but when he'd added that last bit, she decided not to say anything at all about going. "Good to see you haven't changed a bit," she said sarcastically.

"What do you mean?" James looked confused.

"'Our team is pretty great, thanks to yours truly,'" she mimicked.

James sighed. "Oh that. It was called a joke, Evans. Ever heard of one?"

"Obviously seeing as how this conversation is fits into that classification quiet well," she replied bitingly.

James stood up from the table, practically falling over the bench in his haste to get away from her. Lily merely shrugged and watched him leave.

He stormed into the changing rooms, glaring at everyone in his path. "Get dressed," he barked at two of his new players, "we're warming up in two minutes."

Leola Mackenzie gave Paz Safford a confused look but the two proceeded to grab their robes extremely quickly.

In exactly one minute and fifty-four seconds the entire Gryffindor House Quidditch team was outside, flying loops and warming up. Hufflepuff came out a few minutes later and the Gryffindor team got off the pitch to watch their opposition.

"Dammit Hufflepuff's got a new Seeker." James said softly to Sirius. They watched the Seeker dive down a few times, making sure his broom worked straight.

"It'll be fine," Sirius patted him on the shoulder. "It'll be great."

James didn't trust himself to speak, choosing instead to wait for the referee, Madam Trollop, to call the Captains forward.

"Now we'll have a nice fair match," she looked into their eyes for a moment before continuing, "Now shake hands, Captains."

James shook the hand of the Hufflepuff Captain and new Seeker, Veronica Maurice. She was an extremely tall and pretty black girl, with her hair done up in braids. "Good luck," he said with a smile.

"You too." Maurice replied.

"And now they're in the air, the Quaffle's flying… oh no, now it's falling. Wait, wait, I see Van Rensselaer has caught it. He's one of the few original players left from last year's team for Gryffindor. And he's flying, passes to Macdonald—oohh nice flying! Macdonald _very_ narrowly manages to avoid a bludger sent her way by Hufflepuff Beater Thomas. Macdonald passes back to Van Rensselaer—wait he's dropped it! Hufflepuff's got possession… ohh nice aim Safford! Paz Safford, Potter's new Beater, just decked Powell, who had the Quaffle. She's gorgeous, that one. Oh wait, now the Quaffle's back in Gryffindor's possession… Nolan Heaton has it… he's about to shoot… he's scored! Ten nothing Gryffindor!" The announcer, Edwin Grafton, shouted. "Brilliant play, I must say! Okay, Maxwell throws the Quaffle to teammate Alexandria Jones—stunning girl—and she's flying, passes to Marcel Agnew, Agnew passes to Powell, Powell flies, shoots… _wonderful save by new Gryffindor Keeper Leola Mackenzie! _That's some skill! Potter's done well with his team!"

Lily watched the flying from her seat beside Marlene. They were decked out in Gryffindor colors, screaming their hearts out. A few rows behind them sat Severus Snape and Lucius Malfoy. Neither looked extremely pleased as Gryffindor began to demolish Hufflepuff.

"Looks like Potter's spotted something… wait Hufflepuff's Seeker Maurice sees it too… they're both flying at it… hope they don't crash—those balls are new and blood is hard to get out—ooff sorry Professor, no need to take the mike from me… anyway, there they go… Potter's advancing… Maurice is too… Maurice is closer… she's reaching her arm out… wait, wait! Potter's waving his arm in the air! What the bloody hell—sorry Professor—has gotten into him?!?" Grafton announced, jumping up from his seat. "I believe he's got the Snitch! Gryffindor wins in thirty minutes with an astounding lead of 590 to 30!"

James was grinning as he met his teammates on the pitch. They had flown brilliantly and he had no qualms about letting them know it. "You bloody rule, all of you!" He shouted, his previous hang-up about Quidditch gone. "You all did amazing! Party in the Tower!"

Sirius beamed at him as he was engulfed by a group of girls. James himself was surrounded but he managed to pull Remus and Peter next to him. "Enjoy it!" He yelled. "We earned it!" Peter grinned idiotically as girls, in their haste to get to James, clung to him.

Marlene and Lily walked down to the pitch together, laughing as they passed the team in their excitement. Sirius ran over with Mary, upon seeing them.

"Enjoy the game, ladies?" He asked with a wide grin.

"Amazing," she effused, "you lot are great."

Lily smiled and nodded. She had practically lost her voice from screaming.

James saw her in the crowd but turned away. He wasn't going to let another confrontation ruin his spirit today. He pulled out his wand and muttered a quick spell.

"PRONGS!" Sirius shouted as he looked down at his clothes. Instead of his regular Gryffindor Quidditch robes he wore a most swashbuckling pair of pantaloons with a billowing white shirt. Around him, everyone stood in a similar state of apparel.

"What?" James asked innocently.

"HAPPY PIRATE'S DAY!"


	5. Priceless Issues

The party was raging in the Gryffindor Common Room. The Marauders had set up court in the center of the room, occupying the best couches in front of the fireplace. Music was blasting, some Muggle group called the Beatles that most of the girls were gaga over. Sirius had an arm wrapped around two girls who sat on either side of him, laughing as they talked. Remus, the quieter one, sat beside Marlene McKinnon on a different couch. Peter sat beside James and listened to him relive every moment. James was in his element, surrounded by pretty girls and eager listeners.

Lily Evans was alone upon the steps to the boys' dormitories. She was caught between wanting desperately to leave the party due to the lack of fun she was having and yet a strong desire to stay and become one with the others. She was pondering her dilemma when she saw Mary Meadows saunter over to her.

"Oh Mary, what's wrong?" She asked when she saw Mary's sad face.

"Sirius Black, the tosser." Mary replied, looking over in his general direction.

Lily followed Mary's gaze and nodded. "That's Black for you, Mary. But don't be sad over him. I thought you weren't interested?"

Mary laughed bitterly. "It's called playing hard to get, Lily. You should know that seeing as how you practically wrote the book on how to do it."

"What do you mean, wrote the book?" Lily raised her eyebrows. "I haven't played hard to get."

"Yes, you have. What do you think you've done to James Potter? He wants you because he can't have you. That's what I tried to evoke in Black but to no use. I'm no you and he's no Potter." Mary sighed. "I'm going to see if they've anything to spice my punch up a bit. Coming?"

Lily shook her head. "Nah, I'm fine with this." She lifted her bottle of butterbeer as proof.

"I'm going to try and see what Black does when I ask him for some spices. If he leaves those bimbos he's interested, right?"

"Definitely," Lily agreed.

"Wish me luck." Mary ambled over to Sirius, leaning down and whispering in his ear. Lily watched as he nodded and stood up, leaving behind his blonde bimbos. He led her over to the bookcase, where he slyly pulled out a small flask. Lily, with her 20-20 vision, read the label aloud to herself. "Firewhisky," she muttered.

"Talking to yourself is either the first sign of insanity or drunkenness," a voice teased. Lily looked away from the bookcase to see James Potter standing before her.

"Neither in my case," Lily replied.

"Too bad. Insanity is loads of fun. And being drunk isn't too bad."

"Oh would you know a lot about both?" Lily raised an eyebrow. "My, my, here I thought that Dumbledore may have known what he was doing having you as Head Boy."

James winked at her. "It's a 'don't ask don't tell' policy."

Lily laughed, forgetting for a moment who she was dealing with. When she looked back at James, she saw in his eyes that same lovesick look she'd seen all last year. "Don't ruin the moment," she warned.

"Oh I wouldn't do that. But I do have something to ask you."

"What's that?" Lily asked hesitantly.

"Will you," he began. Lily felt her spirits drooping. Here it came. Yet another proposal to date. She ran through her mental list of rejections before setting upon one.

"I will when Hufflepuff beats Gryffindor at Quidditch!" She said when she realized he was finished. She had zoned out during the asking part, choosing to find a rejection that wasn't too harsh.

James looked at her strangely. "You'll move when Hufflepuff beats Gryffindor at Quidditch? That may take a long time, Evans. Are you planning on camping out on the steps to the boys' dormitory?"

Lily stared at him. "You didn't ask me out?"

"Er… no?"

"Oh. Well… um… yeah…" Lily blushed, her face as red as a tomato.

"Well will you?" James asked somewhat impatiently.

"Will I what?" Lily said carefully, making sure to not zone out.

"Will you move?" James sighed.

She blushed again. God she hated having red hair. She probably looked like a tomato that caught fire. Blast those genetics. "Er… yeah…" Lily stood up to let him through, leaning against the wall. James brushed against her as he walked up, not bothering to apologize or thank her for moving. "Stupid twat," she murmured to herself again.

"Insanity!" James called out infuriatingly from the steps. He had heard her speak as he walked up.

Lily sighed as she sank down onto them again. She pulled her knees to her chest, watching Mary flirt with Sirius. Mary had been a shy, quiet girl until this summer. This summer she had met with Sirius Black.

"You seem to like these stairs a lot," James remarked as he walked back down.

Lily glared at him.

"Oooh silence. The quiet killer."

Lily rolled her eyes.

"Careful Evans, they may get stuck that way."

She made a face at him.

"Now wouldn't it be fun to go through life looking like that?" He pulled a small mirror out of his jeans pocket. Lily almost burst out laughing when she realized to what extent his vanity really was. Luckily she remembered her silence and caught herself in time.

James held the mirror up for her to see her face. Her eyes were crossed, her tongue was stuck out at an awkward angle, her cheeks were blown out; in short she looked awful. She started to giggle when she saw herself.

"Broken the vow of silence, have you? What will the Reverend Mother say?" James teased.

"To hell with James Potter," Lily replied with a slight smile.

"Touché, Miss Evans. And I must say, your face looked much better a minute ago." He grinned at her.

Lily's smile grew. "Do you have a larger mirror in another pocket, perhaps? That one can't possibly be big enough to fit your entire big head into it."

James reached into his back pocket and pulled out another mirror, this one considerably larger.

"That's vanity for you," Lily stated as she fixed her hair.

"You've heard of magic, haven't you?" James answered. The way he phrased his question brought back to her Mary's accusations of writing the book on hard to get. Perhaps she had been leading him on?

Lily didn't reply. She didn't want to lead him on again.

"Oh bloody hell. You're back to silence." He slid down onto the stair beside her. "What've I done this time? Go ahead, read me my list of wrongdoings."

She didn't reply.

"So you're just going to stop in the middle of a perfectly _friendly_ conversation and freeze up?"

She bit her tongue but didn't speak.

"You've got issues, you know that, don't you?"

Nothing.

"Well it's a good thing I'm an amazing conversationalist. I'll have this damn conversation alone if I must."

She looked at the ground.

"I've no time for this. I've got eager listeners waiting to hear my story." He looked at her. "Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. You've got to get over this whole silence thing, Evans. It'll make exchanging our wedding vows hard."

Lily bit her lips to keep from smiling.

"Stop it, Evans. I know you want to smile. Come on, the thoughts of a wedding to me? Priceless."

She sucked in her cheeks.

"And you've got to make that face in all of the pictures. It's grand." He fished the mirror out again and showed her what she looked like. "It should be illegal to look that good."

Lily rolled her eyes but kept sucking in her cheeks to keep from laughing.

"Alright Miss Evans, I leave you to your silence. Should you decide that you actually want to have a _dialogue_ that involves _two people talking_ instead of you talking to yourself about what a twat I am, I'll be over there." James pointed over to where Peter sat.

Lily didn't say anything but she let the air out of her cheeks.

"Goodnight, Evans."

She watched him walk away before speaking softly. "Good game, Potter."

James turned around in split second. "I knew it!" He walked over to her again. "You watched the game," he said accusingly.

"Guilty as charged."

"Liar, you told me you weren't going."

"Did I? I don't recall." Lily grinned at him, "but it's my bedtime, Potter. I need plenty of sleep if I'm to battle wits against you." She walked away from him, surprised at the amount of civil conversation they'd managed lately. It was almost discerning, while at the same time quite enjoyable.

She walked up her staircase and smiled as she changed into her pajamas. The lights were off and she was alone in the room. She heard a loud roar of laughter and regretted her decision to go to bed so early. Was it worth getting up again, changing to join a party that would soon be ending?

A tap at her window decided for her.

---

**Author's Note: **Reviews are lovely, just so everyone knows. I really appreciate them and they make me want to write more. I will update with two chapters for every twenty reviews I get. Fair deal?

Lexie, I'd like to thank you for all the reviews you write. You're seriously inspiring and make me want to write. You've reviewed all the chapters in my two stories (I don't count my first story. I don't like it at all, now that I've reread it!) and made me want to write. ) Thank you for **all **of the reviews.


	6. Views Truth or Dare

"Care for a lift, m'lady?" James Potter and his fellow Marauders stood before her. Well it was more accurate to say they _flew_ before her. They were sitting comfortably upon a broomstick, with a girl behind each with the exception of James. "We're going out for a victory spin."

"I'm not dressed," she said as she glanced down at her pajamas.

Mary, sitting quite happily behind Sirius, flicked her wand. "Now you are," she said with a grin.

Lily looked down and rolled her eyes at what Mary thought was proper attire. She was in a pair of bellbottom jeans and a tie-dyed shirt that ended above her midriff. "Lovely," she muttered before speaking aloud. "Alright, swing over here, Potter." She climbed slowly onto the windowsill, taking care to balance herself. With a quick look down, she dropped herself onto the broom.

"Where to?" James asked with a small smile.

"We could go out to the Forbidden Forest," Sirius suggested.

Lily nixed that idea. "Too much of a chance we'll get caught." She thought for a moment. "How about the cliffs overlooking the lake? I know where a cave is."

Sirius looked at her with admiration. "We may have to add another Marauder to the mix, fellas."

She rolled her eyes but grinned at him.

James felt a bit left out so he swished the broom a little, enough for it to be noticeable but not so much that Lily would accuse him. With a little scream, she clung to him.

"We're off," he said as he lifted his broom higher into the air. "Everyone race to the cliffs and then we'll all meet and Lily can show us the cave."

The others set off in lightning speed. James flew higher and faster than the others.

"Can't. You. Slow. Down?" Lily said through chattering teeth.

James didn't look back at her as he spoke. "Slow's no fun, Evans."

"But I won't die from going slow."

"Yeah but you won't enjoy it as much." To prove his point, he slowed down considerably. The wind that had been whipping through her hair stopped.

She sighed. "Fine Potter, point taken. Speed up."

"You're bossy, you know."

"Less talking, more flying."

James grinned as he pulled his broom upward. He had it spin a few times quickly, then do a complete 360.

"Ho-ly shit," Lily sighed, wrapping her arms even tighter around him. "Can we do that again?"

James was in heaven. His brain couldn't focus anymore. All of his senses were in overload. His brain kept repeating the message: _Flying. With. Lily. Evans! Flying. With. Lily. Evans!_

Lily looked down at the lake beneath her in awe. It was such a beautiful sight. She felt sad as she tugged on James's robe to let him know that it was near time to land.

They landed reluctantly, the eight of them. Lily pulled out her wand quietly and led the group down a set of cliffs. There was a small path of sand, only visible to those who knew it was there. It was a five minute walk from where they landed but when they reached it, they instantly deemed it worthy.

The cave shimmered in the moonlight, looking out onto the lake. It was invisible to the naked eye, only seen by those who knew where to look. Lily smiled at their astonished faces and shrugged by way of explanation. She led them into it, grabbing firewood from the stack she'd left at the end of last year.

"Wow," James whispered, looking out at the view.

"Enough with the adoration." Lily grinned at them. "Let's sit."

Everyone settled in a circle around the fire she'd lit. The first hour of conversation was trivial but soon gave way to serious talk.

"So tell me something," Mary said as she leaned against Sirius, "are you and James related? Because my gran, who's all witch, thinks you two are."

"My dad and his mum are first cousins," James explained, "their parents were siblings. Me and Sirius are second cousins."

"Our families are tied together. By marriage we're related to every Hogwarts pureblood family." Sirius smiled. "Don't tell my mother, though. She hates that I'm related to 'those dreaded Potters, Weasleys, Longbottoms, Crouches, and Prewetts.' Actually the Crouches she didn't mind so much. Barty Jr.'s a bit batty, which makes her happy. But the rest of them? 'Blood traitors!'" Sirius said with a half smile. "It's a bit mad, the amount of time she spends investigating our lineage. She's completely psychotic about it."

"My dad loves to tease your mum about it," James said with a smile. He looked at the others. "We had this big reunion thing a few years back. Everyone who was alive was there. It was fun."

"Oh yeah. Hearing the Blacks and Rosiers and Crouches go on for ages about blood purification. My idea of a good time for sure." Sirius rolled his eyes. "But Andromeda's great fun. She's the only sane one in that family."

James pretended to look hurt. "Ahem! What am I? The help?"

"No mate, you're bloody insane." Sirius grinned at him.

Remus tossed a piece of firewood onto the fire. It crackled and began to burn.

"So let's everyone tell a secret," Neala Waters suggested. She was a fellow seventh year Gryffindor and Peter's "date" for the night. Honestly, the only reason she was here was because she fancied James but no one knew that. Or so she thought.

"What kind of secret?" Lily was instantly suspicious.

"Any kind you'd like." Neala shrugged.

"I've no secrets." Lily answered. "You lot can tell them. I'll listen."

"Nope, sorry Evans, doesn't work that way." James said with a slight smile. "If we tell, you tell."

"What is this, primary school?" Lily retorted.

"Come on, tell." James wheedled.

"No." She crossed her arms on her chest, glancing at her watch. "Oh wow, it's nearly four!"

The others looked at their watches in dismay. Four in the morning meant that they'd spent nearly five hours at the caves. Sneaking in would be rather hard.

"You can fly, right Evans?" James asked.

She looked at him apprehensively. "Somewhat…"

"Well then you'll have to fly my broom. It's too risky for all of us to be gallant and drop each of you off. You'll have to take Neala or Mary or Marlene with you but you'll have to fly. And you know Marlene can't fly. You'll have to take her on your broom. Toss her on there and Mary'll take Neala." James said, his voice dangerously close to ordering.

"And I'll just keep your broom then, for all of eternity?" Lily raised her eyebrow and looked at him with a scrutinizing look.

"Of course not!" He laughed outright at the idea. "You'll give it back to me later."

"Fine. Whatever." Lily shrugged and took the broom he offered her. Marlene clambered aboard behind her and they lifted off into the night sky.

"Sucks that you love her, doesn't it?" Sirius said lightly, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder.

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**Author's Note**: Thank you to everyone who reviewed! I know it's not 20 reviews but 13 is decent. ) It's just one chapter, the rest are going to come up in sets of two.


	7. Holding it Hostage

"You! You know who Lily Evans is, right?" James looked at the small second year girl.

She nodded, looking at him with adoration in her eyes. _The_ James Potter was speaking to her! Wait until all the others heard about it!

"Go tell her to bring me my broom this bloody instant!" He nearly shouted before remembering his manners. "Please."

The girl smiled as she looked at his trademark grin. He was James Potter and he was asking _her_ to do him a favor. Classes could wait. She galloped up the stairs to find Lily Evans.

She didn't have to look very far. Lily was sitting cross-legged upon her bed in the seventh year girls' dormitory.

"Can I help you?" Lily asked kindly.

"James Potter asked me to tell you to bring him his broom, please."

"I doubt he said it that nicely. And you can tell him that I'm holding it hostage until he returns the book he stole from me!"

The girl nodded and turned to walk away.

"Thanks," Lily said to her back.

James looked mutinous when he saw that the second year returned without his broom or Lily. "Where the bloody hell is she?"

"She said she's holding it hostage till you return her book?"

"Book? What bloody book?"

"Haven't the slightest idea." The second year shrugged, keeping her eyes on his face.

"She's so bloody unreasonable." James sighed. "The staircase turns to a slide if a bloke tries to go up, right?"

The girl nodded, again.

"Have you a broomstick?"

"No, sorry. Don't play Quidditch."

"What floor is the seventh year girls' dormitory on?" James had a wild look upon his face.

"The fourth…"

"Then I'll have to make a run for it, won't I?" He smiled at her confused look before walking backwards toward the portrait hole. "I'd suggest moving," he said nicely.

She barely moved out of the way when he tore by her in a mad run, dashing up the stairs and taking them three at a time. He was panting by the time he reached the doorway of the dormitory he wanted but it was worth it. He made it.

Without bothering to knock, he walked in.

"Manners, Potter. Lost yours?" Lily said without looking up from her books.

"Yes. I'd ask to borrow yours but I know you lack them." He retorted. "I need my broom."

"Pity. I need my book."

"I haven't got any of your books!"

"Liar! I know Mary lent you that bloody book." Lily glared at him.

"What book?" James looked truly baffled.

"Fine, don't admit. Whatever. Take your bloody broom." Lily pointed to her trunk. "It's in there."

James grinned at her as he went to retrieve his prized possession. "Oh my darling princess broom. Missed you so, I have." He whispered, caressing the smooth wood.

"Are you talking to yourself or the broom, Potter?" Lily looked amused.

"The broom, Evans."

"Such a shame. I suppose I won't have to call St. Mungo's yet. And here I was wishing I'd be rid of you."

"Not yet you won't." He winked at her. It was a wink that caught her unaware. She hadn't been expecting it. It was oddly flirtatious and yet somewhat serious. It was a wink of promise.

Lily shook her head. She wasn't used to overanalyzing anything that dealt with James Potter.

"So what are you up to?" He asked, seating himself on the edge of her bed.

"Studying… what are you doing, James?" She looked at him perched upon her bed. Who did he think he was?!?

"'James'?" James smiled slightly.

"Potter," she corrected before berating herself silently. Drat that stupid wink! And then him sitting on her bed. It had all gone to her head. Momentary weakness.

"Oh no, no way. Now that you've called me 'James' it's here to stay."

Lily sighed. "I suppose you're going to ask to call me 'Lily' now, aren't you?"

"Au contraire, mademoiselle. I'm not going to ask." He grinned at her.

Lily didn't reply. She tried to engross herself in her studies but every sentence she read flew out of her head and her eyes kept flitting up towards him.

"What are you doing here?" She asked after about five minutes of silence.

"Sitting, _Lily_. That doesn't disturb you, does it?" James answered innocently.

"Why are you still here?"

"Why, I'm hurt. Here I am just minding my own business and you're sitting here asking me why I'm still here? Oh I'm very, very hurt."

"You know what I mean, Potter."

"No. And no going back to surnames. We've made the leap, we're _friends_ now." James looked at her. "Aren't we?"

The look in his eyes was completely astonishing. His eyes were staring at hers with a hint of worry, a fear of rejection. There was no possible way for her to hurt those eyes, even if she wanted to.

"Yes, I suppose we're friends," she paused, "James."

James strove to make sure his true emotions wouldn't betray him. She couldn't know that this was all helping him win her, someday. At least he hoped it was. But he was content to hear his name spoken from her lips.

He replied lightheartedly, pretending not to feel anything but a little happiness. "Glad it's settled. Now I'll answer your question. I'm here because the staircase has turned to a slide and I haven't got much of a desire to draw attention to the fact that I came to your room. I figured you wouldn't want many people to know."

Lily rewarded his thoughtfulness with a smile. "Thanks, James."

"No problem, Lily."

They sat in silence for a bit, each contemplating the unique situation they were in.

James thought of his joy at being in the same room as Lily without her yelling at him or wishing him dead. In fact, she was even _content_ with him there. She was calling him by his first name; he had retrieved his precious broom; it was a good day.

Lily was thinking about how awkward it would be to explain this situation to anyone who entered. James Potter was seated quite comfortably at the foot of her bed, leafing through some of her magazines. Mary would simply laugh and further accuse her of playing hard to get. Marlene wouldn't say anything; she'd smile knowingly but keep her silence. Neala Waters would be annoyed and nosy, begging Lily to tell her if James Potter had said _anything_ about her. Lily's fourth roommate, Kyna McMillian, wouldn't notice. Kyna was the kind of girl who didn't really care. She could walk past Dumbledore and McGonagall snogging, not that that was something Lily even wanted to imagine, and not notice it!

"So Lily, I've been meaning to ask you… what happened between you and Sniv… I mean Severus Snape?" James said conversationally.

"What do you mean?" She looked at him a bit surprised.

"Well you two were thick as thieves the first few years here. And then fifth year you stopped being friends or something? Did you have a falling out?" James laid himself across the foot of her bed, facing her. "Cos if so, you could fix it."

"Are you advocating friendship with a _Slytherin_?" Lily asked in a mocking tone.

"Yep, suppose I am."

"Are you ill? Taken a fall upon your head?"

James laughed. "No, no falls or illness. I've just noticed."

"Well it really wasn't a falling out. We just… drifted. And then him calling me that… that word didn't help much."

"You mean back in fifth year? But Mary told me he apologized later."

"Yes, he did. But it was still there. Laugh if you'd like but our last conversation was about you." Lily smiled ironically.

"Me?" James looked so confused.

"Well we sort of fell out about you a while back. Severus is convinced that… oh never mind, it's a silly theory. But we argued about you and the other Marauders. About you saving his neck and then fancying me. I kind of defended you. Of course I insulted you later on but it was still me defending you, whom he hates, and arguing about his friends."

"What'd you say about me?"

Lily laughed. "Ever the arrogant, huh James? But it doesn't matter. This won't go to your head, much. I only said that you didn't practice Dark Arts and weren't evil. But I did say that you were an arrogant toerag."

"Interesting use of adjectives. What was Snape's response?"

"He didn't really hear the rest. I think he focused on me insulting you and left rather happy. And then there was the whole… scene. After O.W.L.s, remember? We argued that night."

"You should work it out, still." James spoke firmly. "He's had a hard time and it's not his fault. His dad's a bit… off."

Lily nodded. "I know. Trust me, I know. But that doesn't make it right. Besides, I didn't like his mates much."

"But he's not too bad, you know that, right?" James had no idea why he was pleading Severus Snape's case to Lily Evans but he was. His mother, in an attempt to calm his hatred, had sat down with him one afternoon and told him exactly what Severus Snape faced when he went home. After hearing that, it was no surprise that Snape had turned out the way he did. His home life was practically as bad as Sirius's! Of course that wasn't much of a reason to act the way he did, he could have changed, but no. It wasn't completely his fault.

Lily shrugged. She wasn't sure what she wanted anymore but friendship with Snape wasn't it. He'd changed from the past. Altered and immersed himself in the Dark Arts. And she wanted no part of it.

James let the subject fall. Plucking absentmindedly at the covers upon Lily's bed, he spoke again. "So since we're on the bad subject topic today, would you mind if I asked you a question?"

"As long as you're not asking me out." Lily covered her mouth with her hand. Those words had shot out of her mouth, practically of their own free will. She felt bad for the venom that they carried.

He laughed it off. "No, no. Definitely not asking you out. I'm only asking why you so strongly despised me?"

Lily opened her mouth. Her reply was prepared. But then, slowly, the door to the dormitory opened. Mary, Marlene, Neala, and Kyna all walked in together, taking in the sight of James Potter lying across the foot of Lily's bed.

"Hullo ladies," he said from his position. "Lovely day, isn't it?"

"Quite lovely. Though you wouldn't know since you're shut up in the dorms." Mary replied with a wicked smile.

"Have any of you seen the others?" He asked.

"They're in the library." Marlene supplied, sitting down upon her own bed.

"The _library_? Are you sure?" James gasped.

"Yes, I'm sure. I was just down there."

"Sirius too?"

"Sirius too."

James sat up. This meant that the Marauders were in the stages of planning a prank. And they hadn't even told him? How insulting.

"We'll continue the conversation later, right Lily?" He smiled at her hopefully as he clambered off her bed.

Lily couldn't help smiling back. "Sure we will, James."

He walked out of the room a happy man, oblivious to the screeches that were erupting in the room he had just vacated.

"'_Lily_?' '_James_?'" Mary mimicked. "When's the wedding?"

Lily rolled her eyes. "We're friends now… sort of."

"Oh la la." Mary grinned at her. "I demand to be a bridesmaid."

"At what wedding?" Lily asked innocently.

"Yours. To James Potter."

"You're off your rocker, Mary darling. How much has Sirius given you to drink?"

"I'm not, Lily. Mark my words. You'll marry him."

"Oh no she won't!" Neala cried out.

"What do you mean?" Mary looked at her surprised.

"James Potter doesn't fancy her anymore. Haven't you heard?" Neala smiled. "Peter Pettigrew told me that James doesn't fancy her at all. He fancies some new girl, though Peter doesn't know who."

"He just randomly told you this?" Mary raised her eyebrows at Neala. "Seems rather dodgy, doesn't it?"

Neala shook her head. "He told me in secret, of course. He accidentally let it slip that James didn't fancy Lily anymore but refused emphatically to tell me who he did fancy."

"I don't believe you. Or rather, I don't believe Peter Pettigrew. He's always been a bit dotty. I think he's wrong." Mary replied obstinately. "James and Lily are meant to be. It's practically written in the stars. In fact, I'll ask at our next Divination lesson if it's up there."

Marlene hadn't been paying to the attention to the conversation. Instead she was studying the very solemn, very pale face of Lily Evans.


	8. Just a Twidget

Lily scampered out of the Gryffindor Common Room clutching a stack of papers in her hands. She was so busy thinking that she didn't notice who was near her until she ran directly into them, tossing both of them on the ground like rag dolls.

"Bit of a hurry?" James Potter asked with laughter in his voice as he pulled her to her feet.

Lily laughed as she allowed him to pull her up. "Just a twidget."

"Twidget?" He echoed with a confused look.

"Twidget." Lily smiled up at him as she bent down to pick up their papers. He had been carrying a stack of notes that had been spilt upon the collision.

He leaned over beside her, helping her collect them. After a few seconds, she walked off towards the owlery to mail a letter and he walked into his bedroom to plan a very delightful prank.

James spread the papers out in front of him with a gleeful smile. There were so many things to think, so many plans to be laid. His letter to the Marauders was somewhere in the stack. The letter he'd written in desperation earlier but he didn't think of it now. He shuffled through his papers trying to find a list for the prank when he noticed a page he hadn't seen before.

He pulled it out of the stack, giving it a cursory glance. It wasn't his signature but it was familiar. He didn't recognize it until at the very end he read the name _Lily Evans_. He gasped as he looked it over again. With a somewhat guilty feeling, he settled down to read it.

_Dear Petunia,_

_I know it's silly, me writing these letters that never get delivered but it's therapeutic. Years ago I would have sent them and waited eagerly for your reply. Now I send them to a room in the Leaky Cauldron. An empty room I've had reserved for ages. I send them and watch them add up over the years, all the letters I've written but never truly sent. I suppose I could just burn them, toss them into the fire after they're written but I don't want to. I read them and keep them like a diary. The room's rather well organized, in fact. Someday I'll burn them. Someday when I've graduated and living on my own (or married), I'll burn them all._

_But until then I'll keep writing._

_James Potter and I talked about Severus Snape. It was hard to see our friendship end. We were good friends until Hogwarts happened. But I'm glad it did. If I hadn't gone here, I'd never have met my friends._

_Mary Macdonald's the most cunningly charming girl I've ever met. She's such a brilliantly hysterical girl. She's a Chaser for Gryffindor and nearly dating Sirius Black. Of course she's not sure if she wants to date him. Half of her does but the other half, that holds back._

_I understand where she's coming from. Sirius and James are the heartbreakers of Hogwarts. They've broken the heart of every girl, nearly, here. It'd be hard to date one of them. They're so tight knit that dating one would mean dating nearly all of them and how silly would __**that**__ be? Of course it could be kind of fun, having them around. They have loads of laughs and adventures. It could be fun. Who knows what it'd be like to date James Potter?_

_Speaking of James Potter, I think I've gone soft. I no longer dislike him. Au contraire, we're even __**friends**__. We had a nice long talk yesterday as I mentioned. He's a good listener and he even tried to reconcile me with Severus Snape, his __**sworn**__ enemy. But of course James's is like that. He saved Sev's life. Did I tell you that? Severus can never get over that fact; he hates being in debt to James Potter. Of course I haven't the slightest idea what James saved him from but I'm sure someday he'll tell me._

_According to Neala Waters, he's gone off me. I'm not quite sure why but he no longer fancies me. In theory these are words I've been longing to hear since, oh say, fourth year. But now that I've heard them… I can't decide if it's the idea of being fancied or him actually fancying me I'll miss. Now don't get me wrong, I haven't begun to fancy him or anything. It's just a bit awkward to think of him __**not**__ fancying me. Come to think of it, he hasn't asked me out in ages. Not once since last year. I wonder why. Maybe I'm no longer as good-looking as I used to be? Or maybe I'm not what he thought I was. I'm sure he must have had a confused idea of me for such a long time, the unattainable Lily Evans. I must have only been a prize. I suppose since he and I are friends now he won it, almost. Seems like that's enough for him._

_He's a good guy, really Tuney. I thought he was a lot worse than he is. We still bicker like children but it's amicable, happy bickering. We laugh when we do it. It's great fun. I can't believe I used to think he was foolish. Well I can but I mean, he's good foolish. He makes me laugh so much, Tuney. It's marvelous._

_God, here I am going on and on about James Potter! I guess this letter's long enough. I'll send it to my empty room to wait for the day that flames will feast upon my words._

_All my love,_

_Lily_

James looked at the letter in his hand in shock while Lily, in the owlery, sat with a similar look upon her face.

She had been searching for her letter to Petunia. All of her papers lay scattered around her as she leaned against the brick wall. She had found a letter that didn't belong to her and it surprised her when she read it.

_Padfoot, Wormtail, and Moony,_

_I know you'll kill me for going on about her, again, but I can't help it. She's always on my mind, even during our moonlight monkeyshines._

_Now before I go down the long and depressing road that is love, I'll take a few moments to highlight the wonders of the word __**monkeyshines**__. Isn't it a great word? The synonyms are mischief, trouble, pranks, high jinks, shenanigans, and tom-foolery. Tom-foolery would be most apt at describing us because what we do, in essence, prepares us for fooling Lord Voldemort, the devil formerly known as __**Tom**__ Riddle. See why tom-foolery is apposite? Look at all my big words, Moony! Aren't you quite proud of me? But I digress (another big word!). Monkeyshines is the best word because it just sounds so Marauder-esque._

_So I spoke with her the other day. I was trying to be serious like you recommended, Moony. It was okay but then we got interrupted. She's a very busy girl. And no Padfoot, do NOT interpret that._

_She's beautiful but it's not just her pretty face. No, there's more to Neci than meets the eye. She's intelligent, witty, and throws whatever I give her back in my face. I'm not sure the last is a typically good quality but I like it. It give her edge and makes her live up to the nickname we gave her. Because, of course, "Neci" means "fiery". And Merlin knows I'm not idiotic enough to refer to her by her real name in a letter that could so easily be intercepted by the wrong slimy hands._

_Mates, what are we doing on our next monkeyshine? What area of the castle __**haven't**__ we explored? I'm feeling restless. I need some new areas. I think we should go to the cliffs. We definitely haven't been there much and we could go check out that cave we saw earlier. We're doing it on the eighth of November, right?_

_Okay, I'm going back to my lovesickness, as Paddy calls it so wisely. I'm smitten. I'm lost. I need some help. How do I get her to even notice me?!?_

_Lost in translation and fascination,_

_Prongs_

So that was it. It was true. James Potter had taken a fancy to a different girl, one he cared enough about to make a nickname for! Lily felt sick with disgust, for both the realization and the fact that she had snooped and read his letter. However, the eighth of November was this coming Friday. Perhaps she could finally find out what these nighttime excursions were?

* * *

She breathed in deeply as she trotted through the shadows behind them. She had already decided to hide in the cave before they showed up. She had heard them confirming that the cave was where they were headed on their monkeyshine. She sighed as she waited. 

She sat in the darkness for nearly an hour, waiting. The moon was full and lit the lake. She could hear their voices before she could see them.

"Come on Wormtail, it's not too far." Lily heard James say.

"I'm tired." Wormtail whimpered.

With a sigh of disgust mixed with pity, Lily listened to James tell Peter to climb aboard his back. What was that to mean?

She gasped when she saw their reflections in the lake. There were four of them. One was a magnificent silver stag upon which rested a small common garden rat. There was a huge black dog and beside him stood something Lily had never seen before her. It was a werewolf.

She felt something tugging on the ribbon in her hair but she wasted no time in finding out what it was stuck upon. She pulled it out before quickly summoning up all of her powers and transforming. She wasted no time. In her studies she had heard what danger werewolves posed to humans. Animals were immune to them.

She stood quietly in the shadows, watching them come in.

"Someone's here," Sirius said quietly. "Someone or something."

The werewolf, when it spoke, had a pleasant voice. "Someone. But they never left."

"You're right, Moony." Sirius-the-dog sniffed around.

Lily watched the stag set the rat onto the ground gently. The stag then walked back toward the center of the cave, to the shadows to where she stood.

"I think we've found our someone." The stag said. Lily almost gasped with the realization that the voice coming from it was James Potter's.

Sirius-the-dog ran over to the stag called James quickly. "What are you talking about, mate?"

James looked at Lily, hidden in the shadows. Only he didn't know it was her. She was, in their eyes, a doe.

"Who are you?" He asked coldly.

Lily didn't reply. She galloped past him, past the werewolf and the rat. She ran as fast as her four hooves could carry her. The moment she reached the castle she transformed back, running upstairs into her bedroom. She watched from her window as the stag walked out to the edge of the cliffs. In its mouth it held her ribbon.


	9. The Same Shade of Green

James sat with an armchair in the Head's Room. He was alone for one of the few times in his life and quite content. It was strange; he normally hated being without his friends but tonight he relished it.

He played with the ribbon in his hand absentmindedly. It was the same shade of green as Lily Evans's eyes, he noted. He had wracked his brains trying to discover whose it was and he had no earthly idea. It was dangerous, not knowing. It could have been anyone, a Slytherin or a Gryffindor. And the doe. That doe that ran out the moment it saw him. What was it doing there?

The chamber he sat in was barely lit; flames from the fire he had lit against the chilly November night flickered on the wall. The walls were thick stone, nearly a meter in width. They blocked the cold wind that hit the windows. There were candles scattered about, though he had not bothered with lighting any. The light from the fire cast itself upon the bookshelves, illuminating titles as it danced upon the wood. There was silence as far as the ear could hear; silence James readily welcomed. The ashes of the fallen wood flickered red for a few seconds before turning white. There was nothing left of them, no trace.

The fire shed light upon the ribbon for a few seconds. The ribbon glowed in his hand before going out. James didn't register the glowing; he merely gazed at the fire with an odd expression.

He felt no need to analyze who had seen Remus take the shape of a werewolf. Somehow all desire to do so had gone out with the light of the ribbon. He was content to sit in quiet, thinking nothing defining.

The door to the Room opened slowly. James didn't bother to turn around. He knew the only person who could enter was Lily.

She held in a gasp as she saw him holding her ribbon. Her hand flew instinctively to the one that tied up her hair at that moment. With a quick tug she wrenched it out of her hair, curling it into a ball within her fist.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly. "I didn't know anyone was here."

James stared straight ahead.

"Would you like me to leave?" Lily asked hesitantly.

"It doesn't matter," he answered after a long pause. "Stay if you'd like. It's your Room as much as it is mine."

Lily bit her lip as she lit a candle that stood upon the table she so often worked on. She clasped the candle with one hand as she walked towards the bookshelves, searching for one.

It took her nearly ten minutes but she found it. With a pleased sigh, she settled into the armchair opposite of him.

Her hair began to fall into her face as she read. Without thinking, she tied it back with a white ribbon.

James saw her tying it, though he made no comment. He looked down at the ribbon in his hand and leaned further back into the chair.

There was silence for nearly an hour. A distant clock chimed midnight as they sat together, Lily reading and James staring at the fire.

He broke the quiet, speaking softly. "It was you, wasn't it?"

Lily looked up from her book. She had a surprised look in her eyes that turned into a fleeting look of fear when he spoke. She looked at him, staring into his hazel eyes. With a catch in her voice she answered simply. "Yes."

There were a million questions swarming in his mind. "Why?"

"Why what?" Lily repeated stupidly.

"Why did you go out there?" He thought for a moment. "Actually, how did you know to go out there that night? Or was it a trial and miss method, camping out every night trying to find out whether the rumors Snape started were true?" He spat the last bit out.

"I… I read your letter…" she trailed off before starting again. "The one to the Mar … Marauders. I read it. By accident, I mean. I guess I picked it up with the rest of my papers." She looked at him defiantly. "Now that I think of it, you had one of my letters too."

"But I didn't sneak off and endanger myself and others just to find out what the big secret was!" James replied angrily. "You put yourself in danger, Lily. You could have died, you could've been bitten! You put _all_ of us in danger!"

"I didn't know… I thought it was some silly prank… a tradition… I didn't know it was so… so serious."

"Well it was—is serious. It's a big deal. It doesn't go away." He took a deep breath. "Who all have you told?"

"No one!" She cried, insulted he had even asked. "I'd never tell anyone!"

"Well how the bloody hell am I supposed to know that if you've got no problem sneaking around?"

"I wasn't 'sneaking around'. I was waiting for you all…"

"It doesn't matter, Evans. Don't do it again." James spoke with finality. "It's over."

Lily was surprised to realize how much she hated him using her surname. "'Evans'?" She looked at him. "I thought we were on first name basis."

"I thought a lot of things."

"James, I'm sorry I went there! I really am! I didn't know it was so important."

He looked at her, straight in the eyes. "You didn't know," he echoed.

"I'm so, so sorry."

James didn't answer. He turned away from her, looking back at the flames. He felt the ribbon in his hand before looking at it one last time. With a measured look, he threw it onto the fire.

Lily watched the ribbon burn. She felt as though her last contact with James had gone up in smoke. Slowly, she stood up and walked over to him. She looked at him without speaking. It was almost as if she were studying him.

His eyes were framed by black glasses. They weren't mischievous or shining the way Lily was used to. Instead they merely looked forward, unseeing. His hair fell onto his face untidily, outlining it a bit. His features were handsome and cold.

With much effort she placed her hand on top of his. "Please don't be mad at me," she gasped. She hadn't expected to feel so much pain from him being upset with her.

James looked away from the flames, at the repentant face of Lily Evans. It was such a strange situation, for him to be sitting in the same room as the girl he loved and not feel nervous or excited.

"You expect me to forgive you for everything, all the things I've gone through because of you?" He asked almost incredulously. "Did you know you've rejected me roughly 1080 times? That you swore you'd rather eat frog's intestines or skinny dip with the Giant Squid? Did you know that each time you rejected me you cut deeper into my heart?" He laughed bitterly. "Of course you knew. You relished rejecting me, Evans." He spat her name out. "You've been enjoying it ever since the day I asked you out. Do you know how much it took to ask you each time? There was a lot more suffering than you'd think. It's not easy to hear the word 'no', especially when it's relating to something you want so much. Of course it wasn't always a plain 'no'. I've got to give you credit, you did manage to vary your answers.

"And then you write your sister, who hates your guts I'm assuming, and tell her you're surprised I no longer fancy you? You don't know if you've gone down in looks? Did you really think I was that shallow, to like you for your looks only? Hate to burst your bubble, Evans, but there are plenty prettier girls around. It wasn't your looks that made me fancy you so much. It was the entire package. And yet you didn't care. You were so haughty, kept throwing it back in my face. And now that I supposedly fancy someone new, something you never bothered to ask me about, you decide that you're going to miss it?" He spoke angrily. "You've got a lot of nerve, you know. You sit there and insult me and never, not once, apologize for it. And then you follow my friends and me out, endangering all of us. So you didn't know it was dangerous. Big deal. There's plenty you don't know, Evans."

Lily couldn't speak. She listened to him without saying a word in her defense. What was there she could say.

He continued. "Here's a newsflash, Evans. I fancied you. Bloody hell, I still fancy you. I'll always fancy you. It's a fact of my life, one you've tried to ruin nonetheless. Frankly, I don't give a damn what you want. You can hate that I do or love it. It doesn't matter. The 'Neci' in my letter? That was you. But of course you figured that out, didn't you? Or wait, you thought it was someone else since Neala Waters, idiotic Neala Waters, told you that I fancied someone else. I'm sure Neala Waters thinks it's her. It's not. You can tell her so. I'm sure you'll enjoy rubbing it in, that you're still wanted and sought after by me. That's the only reason you want me to fancy you, isn't it? So you can feel pretty?" He stared at her as she sat in silence. "You've always had so much to say. Why not now?"

She looked down at her hands. Tears were about to fall if she didn't pull herself together. She took a deep breath before answering. "Because it's true."

He hadn't expected her to answer that way. He was expecting a bitter retort, an argument telling him to get off of his high horse. Her reply knocked his anger down.

She sat back down in her chair, biting her lip to keep the tears from falling. That same distant clock chimed once, signifying the extremely lateness of their conversation.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said all that." James said from his seat. He hadn't turned to face her.

"No, no. Don't be sorry. It's all true."

"Yes but I shouldn't have said it."

Lily closed her eyes and breathed deeply. She tried to speak calmly. "You're right though. I was awful. I _am_ awful. I treat you terribly and I only wanted you to fancy me so I'd feel better about myself. I'm a horrible person. And I'm not saying that so you'll contradict me and tell me how wonderful I am." She looked down at her hands again. "I'm so sorry for everything, James."

James stood up from his chair and reached out his hand for hers. "Friends?" He asked quietly.

She placed hers in his gently. "Friends."


	10. Monkeyshines and Play Pretend

"Paz Safford is doing a tricky bit of flying. She's somersaulting through the air on that broom of hers, beating the bludger left and right. Potter knew what he was doing when he found her," Edwin Grafton announced to the packed stadiums. The Quidditch match between Ravenclaw and Gryffindor had begun. "There goes Ravenclaw beater Loren Eduardo. She's also good at what she does. She's stealing the bludger from Safford! Eduardo's got it. No, now Safford. Now Eduardo. Safford again. Wait it's back to Eduardo. Now this I've never seen. There's more commotion about that damn—ouch Professor! No need to knock my hat off!—bludger than the Quaffle! Wait, no, the Ravenclaw chasers have come to their senses. Cameron Tyler's got it. He's aiming. Oohh nice attempt at blocking but unsuccessful! RAVENCLAW SCORES! FORTY NONE, RAVENCLAW!"

James glared daggers at his team as they met in the locker rooms another forty points later. Unfortunately only one was theirs. "What the bloody hell is wrong with you? We can outfly Ravenclaw in our _sleep_! Why haven't you been flying right?" He turned to Leola Mackenzie. "Listen Leola, you've gotta keep those goals out! I don't care what you have to do, keep them OUT!"

Leola nodded seriously.

"Heaton, Van Rensselaer, listen up. If you can't bloody well score, give it to Macdonald! She's got the hang of scoring." The two chasers cowered beneath James's angry glare. "Mary, nice job with the goal. Get some more." He turned to Sirius and Paz Safford. "Paz, what the bloody hell was with the bludger marathon? Find them. Aim them. Hit them. Three step process. Simple. And Black? Make sure those bludgers stay away from Leola. I'm going to find that damn Snitch as fast as I can." He took a deep breath. "We've got this, we really have. We can do it. I know we can win. We haven't lost a House Cup yet."

His teammates nodded, a bit surprised by the change of tact but it was a welcomed change. "We'll do it, mate." Sirius patted him on the back before walking out onto the pitch. The others followed.

James took one last look around the empty locker room as he walked out. He had a grim look upon his face as he flew. It took nearly another twenty minutes and five attempts at a goal (Leola had blocked them, luckily) before he spotted it. Making sure the Ravenclaw seeker had no idea what he was doing, James sped towards it.

He flew straight at it, not looking around. He vaguely realized he was above the stands as he stretched his arm out for it… it was so close…

"What in Merlin's name is James Potter doing?" Edwin Grafton screeched from the announcer's seat. "He's flying over the crowd! Oye Potter! The pitch is that way! Wait. Wait. He must see the Snitch. He's flying over the Gryffindors now. Over them. There his hand's stretched out. So close. Come on Potter, end the game! Bloody hell! What's going on? Why's he falling off the broom?"

James felt his hand close around the cool metal of the Snitch as he fell towards the stands. He raised it triumphantly before landing not so triumphantly upon a group of fans.

"How much weight have you gained, Potter?" Lily growled from beneath him. "You need a diet!"

He grinned at her, ignoring the pain in his right leg. It was squished at an extremely awkward angle. "We've won," he shouted. Then his hazel eyes closed as he fainted dead away.

Girls screamed when they saw him lying on the ground. Some of them turned on Lily, shouting that she was his murderer. Rolling her eyes, she ignored them as she called help over for him.

A few hours later James lay in the Hospital Wing, his leg hurting. He was ordered to spend the next few nights in the Wing. He could hear the confused chatter from outside the Wing. There were so many girls going wild in the halls from grief that they might maul him the moment they caught sight of him if he walked out right then.

"Who would you like to see?" Madam Connor asked as she looked at him concerned. "There's nearly a hundred people crowding around, begging to see you."

James smiled with delight at all of his friends.

"Can you write a list for me?" Madam Connor said gently. "Write it out, please."

"Sure Vita."

"James, I told you not to call me by my first name." Madam Connor rolled her eyes. "Here's some parchment, dear. Write it out."

_Lily Evans_

_Sirius Black_

_Remus Lupin_

_Peter Pettigrew_

_The Gryffindor Quidditch Team_

He handed the list to her. Madam Connor smiled knowingly as she skimmed it and saw Lily's name. "Only Miss Evans is out there at the moment, James. The others are eating."

James laughed. "Of course they are. Send her in, will you Vita?"

Madam Connor rolled her eyes again but did as he asked. A very concerned looking Lily stormed in moments later.

"James Potter, how could you do that?!?"

"Do what?" He asked weakly.

"Faint on top of me!" Lily glared at him for a moment before laughing. "Oh James, I'm so glad you're okay. I was so worried…" she trailed off when she saw the look on his face. "Friends, remember?"

James nodded. "You were worried though. That's a good sign, isn't it?"

"It's not bad," she shrugged. "But anyway, so many girls were screaming. One girl thought I killed you!"

"That's awful," he laughed. "I'm quite popular, aren't I?"

"Very. There's such a crowd out there. I was almost run over when Madam Connor said I could go in. There were so many tears!"

"They're all crazy, Lily." He winced as pain shot through his leg. He had been attempting to rearrange himself a bit so he'd be sitting but it didn't work well.

"Are you okay? Does it hurt? Do you want me to call Madam Connor?" She asked concernedly.

"No, no, just sit down." He pointed at the end of his bed. "Sit and talk to me."

Lily sat down and looked at him. She waited for him to serve up a topic. After a few minutes, it was evidence he would not.

"Aren't you going to talk?" She asked.

"Nope. You are."

"About what?"

"Tell me about your travels."

Lily sighed. "What about them?"

"Tell me about Krakow. I know Paris. I don't know Krakow."

She smiled as she began to speak. Her melodious voice soothed the pain in his leg.

A few hundred feet away, outside the Hospital Wing, stood Severus Snape. He had been told by the crowd that Lily Evans and only she was admitted to see James Potter. He had a strange bitter taste in his mouth when he was told she was in there. She had stood there for hours, skipping dinner, to be near him when he woke up. Severus looked at the wooden doors, willing her to walk through them. When it was obvious it wouldn't happen, he turned and walked away quickly, leaving his thoughts of her behind.

James laughed loudly, the sound echoing through the infirmary and into the hall where multitudes stood.

"You're brilliant, you know." James said after Lily had told him about the time she hadn't managed to completely pay for a tram ticket and nearly got caught. "Kooky but brilliant."

"Kooky. Almost as good of a word as monkeyshines." Lily winked at him. It was the first time the letters or adventure had been brought up since their argument in the Head's Room. She felt nervous speaking about it but she had to test the waters, make sure they really were alright again.

"Monkeyshine is a pretty good word," he smiled at her widely.

"So your turn to tell me something."

"Nope, now I want to hear about my mass of admirers gathered around the door. Are there really as many as Vita said?"

"Vita? Who's that?" Lily looked around, trying to find the other girl he was speaking of.

He waved a hand. "Madam Connor. Is there, though?"

"Yes, actually. There's plenty of girls dying to see you."

"Do I look alright?" He asked suddenly.

Lily raised her eyebrows at him. "Fishing for compliments?"

"No," he answered rather sullenly, "I've got an audience to see and I don't want them to see me looking like a twat."

"You look fine," she laughed. "Would you like me to beckon them in, m'lord?"

He glared at her as she laughed at him. "It's not that silly to want to look decent if I've got plenty of girls out there. I have a reputation to uphold." He glanced down at his pajamas. They were covered with golden snitches. "These won't do," he muttered. With one hand he managed to pull off his top, ignoring Lily's confused expression. He pulled the covers towards him, allowing only a sliver of his chest to be seen. "What?" he asked when he finally noticed her look.

"What are you doing?" She replied slowly.

He rolled his eyes. "Getting ready, of course. You can't imagine them seeing me in my stupid snitch pajamas, can you?"

"I saw you in them," she said quietly. She wasn't sure why but James changing for the girls outside irritated her to no end.

"Yes but you're Lily. I've got nothing to worry about with you, no reputation to uphold."

"So I'm not important?"

"You are but not when I'm focused on looks. My looks don't matter to you."

"Yes but…" she trailed off, seeing there was no argument. She was only being stubborn holding on to that.

"Lily, are you upset that I didn't change for you?" James asked quietly, looking at her carefully.

"No, of course not." If she hadn't thought she was lying before, she knew she was for certain now. She knew what a lie felt like.

"You are!" His face broke out into a grin. "Silly Kooky, it doesn't mean anything for me to change. I still fancy you!"

Her face turned beet red. "I'm not upset! And why did you call me Kooky?"

James rolled his eyes. "You're slow on the uptake, Lily. Think back to our conversation like three minutes ago."

"Oh."

He laughed but not unkindly. "Oh Lily, you're too much."

"Would you like me to call the others in?" She asked.

James thought for a moment. "Are they going to attack me?"

"Possibly."

"Will you do me a favor?"

"What's the favor?"

"Come on Lily! I practically died today! My leg hurts so badly it's killer. I managed to get Gryffindor the win before fainting. I think I deserve a favor."

She looked at him apprehensively but nodded. "What's the favor, Potter?"

"First say 'I, Lily Evans, agree to do the favor that James Potter is going to ask me to do, no matter how much I may not want to'."

"I, Lily Evans, agree to do the favor that James Potter is going to ask me to do, no matter how much I may not want to." She repeated, rolling her eyes. "Now tell me."

"Pretend you're my girlfriend."

"What?!? You must be mad."

"No listen, I'm not mad. Just do this for me. It'll keep those girls from charging over here and throwing themselves upon me, moving my leg. You'll just sit by me, keeping them away. We can hold hands or something. _Please_." He pleaded. "I need your help."

Against her better judgment, Lily nodded slowly. "Fine but you owe me." She glared at him as he padded the bed beside him. With a very deep sigh, she sat down.

"Vita! Can you come here please?" James shouted.

Madam Connor walked in, looking at them calmly. "What James?"

"Can you let the others in?"

"_All_ of them?" She asked apprehensively.

"Yes."

"Are you sure?"

James nodded. "We've got a plan."

Madam Connor shrugged and walked to the door.

"Here we go," he whispered.

Seeing the girls outside the Hospital Wing hadn't prepared Lily for their entrance. There were girls grinning with happiness, crying at the sight of him. "You'd think they don't have any classes with you," she murmured.

James grinned as they approached him. "Hello everyone."

"Hi James!" Neala Waters launched herself forward. "Are you alright? You look wonderful." She tried to push Lily off the bed, gradually of course, making it look like an accident. Lily glared at her but refused to budge. "Could you move?" Neala asked in a sickly sweet voice. "I want to talk to James."

"Sorry Neala, this is my spot." Lily shrugged. "If James wants his girlfriend to move, he can ask himself."

"Girlfriend?" The girls whispered this amongst themselves.

"Oh, haven't you lot heard?" James looked at them with a wide smile. "Lily and I are together now."

Neala backed off into the crowd. The girls looked at each other in wide-eyed shock before walking out quickly.

"Well done, Evans." James said with a laugh.

"Well done yourself, Potter." Lily giggled. "That was actually fun."

"See? Being my girlfriend wouldn't be hell."

"I never said it would."

"But I'm sure you thought it. You did reject me 1080 times." He spoke lightly.

Lily bit her lip. "I know, James. And I'm sorry for it."

"It's alright Lily, I'm only teasing." He reached for her hand and squeezed it gently. "We're friends. It's fine."

Something in the pit of Lily's stomach didn't seem to think that being friends was fine at all. There was something lacking.

* * *

**Author's Note**: Here's a "flying away" present from me to you! I head home tomorrow after two months abroad and I'm sooo ready for it. Enjoy the chapters! Thanks for all the reviews! I promise I'll address each one soon. I just have to finish packing. P 


	11. Slytherins

_Kooky Cookie,_

_Thanks for hanging out in the Hospital Wing with me, even when my fellow Marauders ditched me for __food__, you hung in there. Thanks for that. You kept me from murdering those girls, you know. Even though you probably think I'm a smug bastard for changing, or stripping rather. Of well. You can be Kooky and I'll be Smuggy and voila. That'll be our names._

_Well Kooks, I'm off to go eat some chow. Sirius finally got back from the kitchens with some food. Whoops, probably shouldn't have told you that. Oh well. Be a good Head Girl and don't tell Dumbledore, alright? _

_Loads of love (in the friendliest sense, of course),_

_James "Smuggy" Potter_

Lily laughed as she read the letter. The Common Room was alight with candles and the fire burned cheerfully. Her fellow seventh years were settling down at the various tables, studying and laughing. Mary Macdonald and Marlene McKinnon were sitting beside each other, talking low tones. He was too undecided for her taste.

James, Peter, Sirius, and Remus sat in the prime position, directly center of the room. Every few minutes a roar of laughter was heard from their direction. Lily rolled her eyes at them when it occurred.

"Oye Lily! Come over here!" Sirius called to her.

"We need someone objective to decide for us," James explained as she sat down.

"Decide what?" Lily asked, looking around at them.

"Who the best looking is." Peter supplied. Lily smiled at him and he was pleased.

"Oh that's an easy one." She began. She watched them hanging on her every word, even Remus.

"Well? Who?" Sirius asked impatiently.

She pointed in the direction of a small first year. "Him." As if on cue, the boy turned around and grinned at them. She beckoned him over with a smile. "Marauders, meet Kenneth Magee."

Kenneth looked at them cockily. "Hullo."

The boys exchanged confused looks but greeted him warmly.

"So you're the boy of Lily's dreams?" Sirius asked.

Kenneth nodded. "Duh."

Lily bit back a smile. "He's my little neighbor," she explained. "I used to watch him years ago."

James shook his hand. "If you survived her, you're a worthy fellow."

She rolled her eyes but smiled happily. She had heard that Kenneth hadn't been fitting in at Hogwarts and befriending the Marauders would definitely help his case.

"Alright mates, it's time for yours truly to patrol the corridors." James stood up from his chair. "Shall we, Lily?"

She waved goodbye to the others. Climbing through the portrait hole, she watched James pull out a small piece of parchment.

"Not that again," Lily sighed. "I hate when you use it. I feel like we're spying on everyone."

"Makes life much easier though, doesn't it? We can manage to only catch Slytherins." James examined it closely. "Speaking of which, I see a rather large gathering of them in an otherwise empty classroom. You up for it?"

"Who's there?" Lily asked.

"The Carrows, Sirius's brother, Mulciber, Avery, and… er… Severus Snape." James said the last name slowly. "We don't have to go, Lily."

She straightened her shoulders. "Yes, we do. It's likely to be Death Eater's thing and that's not acceptable. It's our job, James." She took a deep breath. "What room are they in?"

"Classroom 13." James answered.

They walked in silence, silence that broke only when they reached the classroom.

"What are you lot doing in here?" James asked with an unpleasant expression upon his face.

"What's it to you, Potter?" Mulciber drawled.

"Nothing except it's my job to tell you to get lost." James looked at him.

"Too bad, Potter. We're not finished yet." Snape snarled before turning to Lily. "What do _you_ want?"

Lily glared at him. "For you all to get lost. Plan your Death Eater getaways elsewhere."

Mulciber walked over to her, placing one hand upon her shoulder and framing her face with the other. His grip was tight as he gazed at her face. "You'll be among the first to get lost, Mudblood." He said softly, laughing at her as she struggled.

James pushed him aside. "Don't you dare talk to her like that!"

"Don't worry, Potter. We won't forget about you." That was said by Alecto Carrow. She leaned onto his shoulder, whispering in his ear. "Leave her behind, James. We'll make you great."

"Leave me alone," he spat. "All of you get lost. Detention for being out after curfew, one hundred points each from Slytherin for your language and attacking us." James placed his arm around Lily's shoulders. "Get lost."

"You're stupid, Potter, to choose a Mudblood over us. A Mudblood who doesn't even like you." Alecto hissed as she strolled past them.

Avery walked past, leering at her. Lily clung to James, keeping her wand in front of her. They watched as everyone left except for Snape. He walked up to Lily, ignoring James.

"You shouldn't be here, Lily." He said quietly. "It's dangerous to go against them."

"You shouldn't be here either, Severus." Lily replied. "You shouldn't be doing any of this."

Severus looked at her. "It's too late, Lily." He shrugged before walking away.

James tightened his grip around her. "Are you okay?" He asked.

"I'll be alright," she said softly. "Can we go to the Head's Room?"

James nodded, leading her slowly to their joint sanctuary. It was there that Lily sat down upon the couch beside James, leaning against him. She felt tears fall from her eyes and thought for a moment about how awful she must look. Her thought made her laugh and her tears turned ricocheted into a mixture of laughter and misery. James looked at her for a moment before gently pulling her closer to him.

"It's okay, Lily. It's really okay." He whispered into her hair.

She didn't speak for nearly an hour, letting her feelings out. Finally, all emotion escaped. She looked at him, holding her tightly, and smiled.

"Thank you, James. You're always there when I need you to be." She spoke softly. "You're always there."

James smiled at her. "I'll always be there, Lily."


	12. Home is Where the Heart is

Christmas came upon the castle with all of its usual merriment. The halls were decorated with ivy, tiny fairies fluttered past the students as they walked. The Great Hall stood with its twelve Christmas trees.

"So what are your plans for the holiday?" James asked as the Marauders and Lily sat in a group at dinner one night.

"I'm going to go home." Lily replied. "What about you lot?"

"The same. We're staying at James's place." Sirius explained. "Care to join us?"

Lily hesitated. "I don't want to crash your party…"

"It won't be crashing. It'll be grand, Lils. You've got to come." Sirius wheedled. "Say yes."

She looked at James, who smiled and shrugged.

"Alright, I'd love to." She answered.

Sirius whooped and grinned at her. "It'll be great, Lils. We're having a huge party on Christmas Eve, all the neighbors are invited. It'll be filled with everyone from his neighborhood. James's parents are going to the Ministry Ball so we'll have the time of our lives."

Lily returned his bright grin.

---

"We wish you a Merry Christmas! We wish you a Merry Christmas! We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!" The four boys caroled, arms around each other's shoulders as they proceeded down the main street of James's birthplace, a town called Godric's Hollow.

Lily walked beside them, laughing. She walked with them as they sang at the top of their lungs. "You're too much," she said with a wide smile.

"No, Evans, _you're_ too much!" James separated himself from the others and grabbed some snow.

"Don't you dare, James Potter!" Lily screamed a moment too late. The snowball had already hit her. "You're so dead!" She bent over to grab a handful of snow.

She didn't have time to throw it, though. Peter Pettigrew's voice broke through. "We're here, everyone."

Lily gasped when she saw it. It was the prettiest house she'd ever seen. It was tall, four stories high, with beautiful half circle balconies. Ivy, covered in snow, clung to it while smoke billowed out of its many chimneys. It was made of stone, though it barely shone through.

James grinned when he saw her face. "This is home," he said simply. "Come on in."

He led them through two double wooden doors. They stood a good fourteen feet high. She looked around the entrance hall, taking it all in.

There was a golden fountain in the center of the hall, with tiny crystal fish leaping out of it. Sun shone through huge windows, catching the fish with light. The floors were a dark oak wood, panels arranged in shapes. The walls were white with the doorframes framed in gold. There was a double staircase that met with a landing in the middle, also dark wood. The staircase, she was told, led to the ballroom and the guest bedrooms. It was the formal stair.

James led an enchanted Lily through the other rooms. Sirius, Remus, and Peter had already dispersed to their own rooms, which the Potters had given them years ago. "This is the kitchen," he said with a grin as he walked in.

It was nearly the largest kitchen she'd ever seen. If she hadn't known the Hogwarts kitchen's size, it easily would have been the first. The floors were again dark wood, only this time a shade lighter. The walls were a deep burgundy, a rich color. There was a fireplace big enough to sit in, in fact there were _seats_ built into the walls. House-elves bustled around, grinning and bowing to James as he entered. A huge chandelier hung over the stoves. Near one of the three sinks stood a small woman with bright blonde hair, her back was to them and Lily watched her working for a moment.

"James!" She cried when she saw him. James dropped everything and ran across the huge kitchen to her. She wrapped her arms around him and held him tight. "Oh darling," she whispered.

"Hi Mum!" James exclaimed. He looked over his mother's shoulders at Lily with a smile. When she released him, he led her by the hand to Lily.

"Hello," Lily smiled at her. She was an extremely beautiful woman, with her blonde hair framing her face.

"Hello darling, you must be Lily." Mrs. Potter hugged her. "I've heard so much about you that I feel as if we've already met ages ago."

Lily hugged her back with a smile. She was so similar to her own mother, who she hadn't been able to hug in nearly three years.

"Where are the boys?" Mrs. Potter asked after the greetings.

"Off in their rooms, I bet." James replied with a grin. "Sirius is so excited about being back. I think he's doing handstands on the bed."

Mrs. Potter laughed. "That's Sirius for you." She looked over at Lily and James. "Have you shown Lily her bedroom yet?"

"Not yet, Mum. I wanted to say hello to you first."

"Well darling, go show her!" Mrs. Potter smiled at them.

With a quick wave, James led Lily from the warm kitchen to another hallway. Along the way she passed a dining room, two studies, three bathrooms, and one living room. There were countless portraits and statues.

They climbed up two staircases with relative ease, passing many more rooms.

"How big is this house?" Lily asked incredulously as she passed another smaller kitchen.

"It's around a hundred rooms," James answered. "It's got eleven guest bedrooms, not counting those of the Marauders. There're two mini-kitchens and the big one, a ball room, four studies, a billard's room, and no one knows how many bathrooms. It's pretty big."

Lily nodded as they passed another wing. "I'm going to be so lost."

"Don't worry. There's a map in your room."

"Are you serious?" Lily's eyes widened. "A map?" She thought of her small one room flat.

"Don't sound all surprised, Lily. This house has been in my family for generations. It's been added on to for centuries."

She fell silent as they passed a small pond on the third floor. More crystal fish swam in the waters.

"This is the Marauder suite." James pushed open a huge wooden door with a golden doorknob.

Lily gasped as she saw it. The room was painted a warm golden yellow, with huge armchairs crowding around. It was a circular room with bookshelves built to fit. There were countless books, thousands of them about Quidditch. There was a roaring fire in the middle though there was no fireplace or chimney. There were five doors in between the bookshelves. Each door had a painting above it, framed with burgundy curtains.

"This is our sitting room," he explained. He pointed to the door with a painting of a single lily above it. "That's your room. Mine's over there." His painting was of a Snitch.

He led her into her bedroom with a small smile at her reaction.

Lily literally cried. She was so surprised at the beauty of the room she'd call hers for the next two and a half weeks. The walls were painted a delicate shade of jade. The floor was the same dark wood they clearly favored. There were vases of lilies and roses spread out upon the furniture. There was a small oak table with a circular mirror upon it. Laid upon the table was a golden brush and hand mirror. Her wardrobe was beautifully and carefully decorated with small stars and lilies.

Her bed was the most spectacular. She'd always thought the bed she had now was something but this bed put it to shame. It was a huge four-poster bed, bigger than the one she had in Hogwarts. The curtains were ivory, held back with emerald colored ribbons. Five large pillows lay upon it. A single lily in a matching emerald lay upon it.

"It's… it's… it's beautiful," she whispered. She turned towards him.

"It's really nothing, Lily." James replied happily.

"No, it's definitely something." Without any prior notice, she placed her arms around him. "You're really something, James." She hugged him tightly.

He held her close for a moment before backing away. "Well… er… I'll be… uh… off. Yeah. I'll be off." James gave her one fleeting grin before leaving her in the prettiest room.

He walked into his bedroom with a grin. He jumped onto his bed and spread himself out. The familiar Gryffindor theme made him feel so comfortable that he promptly fell asleep.

Next door to him, however, Lily was wide awake. She had looked in all the drawers in her room, discovering a hidden surprise in each. There was a silk nightgown, a pair of golden slippers, a beautiful short black dress. She giggled with delight when she found her favorite book, the infamous Muggle novel Gone with the Wind. She found the map James had spoke of and looked at it with awe in her eyes. The entire house was nearly as big as Hogwarts.

Three hours passed quickly and before she realized it, a knock at her door reminded her it wasn't a dream.

"Come in." She settled herself upon her bed, looking at the door with interest.

"Hullo Kooky," James greeted her. "Like the room?"

"Love it." She smiled at him.

"Have you seen the best part yet?"

Lily looked at him with shock. She had thought the entire room was the best part. She wasn't expecting more.

James grinned at her, walking towards the walls. Lily realized that the walls weren't painted jade; instead they were covered with jade silk upon which tiny lilies had been painted. She was amazed at how much effort had gone into doing this room up for her.

He leaned against the wall, pushing onto one of the lilies with his hand. In a moment a portion of the wall vanished, leaving a door framed in gold. James flung open the door and Lily gasped at what she saw.

There was a semi-circular balcony with a view of the most amazing gardens she'd ever seen. They were the winter gardens, James explained as he led her out. She could have stood there forever, gazing at the fountains that shot water that glittered like diamonds.

After a few minutes of listening to Lily's teeth chatter, James led her back inside. She was terribly quiet and for a sickening second he thought she would rebuke him for the waste of money.

"I want your house." She said simply, grinning at him.

"Marry me and you'll get it," he teased.

"When's the wedding?"

"Tonight."

"Eager, aren't you?"

"Quite."

"I want this house," she repeated, looking around. "I love this house."

James rolled his eyes at her reaction but was pleased. He had worried she'd hate it, thinking it was too formal.

"It's all wonderful, James. All so wonderful."

---

**Author's Note**: So I'm finally home in SC and I'm ecstatic to be back. I won't be updating as much because school starts soon and I've got a lot of work to do, college apps and finishing the IB program. But enough of that. Here're are my replies to the reviews! )

_Pyromaniac-Girl_: Don't worry, your review made total sense to me. I'm glad you like my story! Thanks for reviewing!

_Naughty-sphinx_: Yeah, I'm a canon stickler, unfortunately. Sometimes I'd so much rather leave the canon and go off on some crazy whim and let everyone live but I can't. The prank I'd have described better but I wanted to move on to a few different things. That and I'm not too good at describing pranks, I think. P Thanks for all the reviews!

_Harryyypotteerr_: Wow, you know how to make a person feel GREAT! The best JL story out there I doubt is mine but I'm really honored you think so! Thanks for reviewing!

_GlindaFied26_: Updating as quickly as I can, I promise! I wasn't really studying abroad. I was just on holiday with my family. I spend a lot of time in Europe because that's where I'm from and that's where all of my extended family is. I wish I was studying abroad though! I was in Poland and France. ) Thanks for reviewing!

_Wingsofire_: Thanks for your review! I'm glad you like it! I'm all for Lily and James too. P Thanks for reviewing!

_Jessiquie_: Ooh I'm so glad you liked my last line in that chapter. I thought I liked it too but it went through a time of me deleting it and trying variations. But in the end, it won out. So I'm glad you thought it was good! Thanks for reviewing!

_ReadingRobyn_: Aw just plain toast? I'm glad you support my cause though. French toast is love. P Thanks for reviewing!

_StArZiLL_: Ask me no questions and I'll tell you no lies. ) Thanks for all the reviews though. P

_Stardust718_: Ooh yes, two months is long. It was lots of fun though. Thanks for reviewing! )

_Katie-koo_: I'm glad you love my story. )

_xSiriusxPotterx_: Deeper plot? Hm… it goes a bit deeper but I'm keeping this one more lighthearted. My other story, _**Sleeping on the Job**_, is definitely much deeper than this one. It addresses a lot more issues. However, I wrote most of it before Book 7 so the names aren't canon. Speaking of names, I'm glad you like my crazy names. I just think that having names that all mean something keeps in line with JK's books. And it's easy for an author to do that. All you have to do is use Google. ) Thanks for reviewing, David!

_Daisychaingirl_: I love your name! ) I'm glad you like my storyline. It probably sounds bad to admit to this but I just wrote without really having much of an idea on how to get from Point A to Point B. It's more fun that way, I think. P Thanks for reviewing!

_twinglesMeMeMe13_: More is on the way! Thanks for reviewing!

_Lexie-H:_ Thank you for all of the reviews. )

_Okay so I'm done with my thank-you's, for now. ) Enjoy these two chapters and I'll try to update __**Sleeping on the Job**__ soon!_


	13. Lavina and the Ball

"We're spending the night at the Ministry." Mr. Potter told them as they sat in the kitchen. "We should be home tomorrow morning, after the Ball. Please don't break any undoable vases, alright? Be good and listen to Starry's advice." Starry was the Potter's chief house-elf, who adored the ground the entire family walked upon.

"Yes sir," the boys said in unison. Lily nodded and smiled.

Mrs. Potter stood up from her seat, escorted by her husband. James was the spitting image of his father, both carelessly good-looking and bespectacled.

"Have a good night, darlings." She hugged each of them with a smile. "Happy Christmas Eve."

After the parents left, the boys looked at each other with delight.

"Why don't you go get ready, Lily, while we finish setting up?" James suggested casually.

It was on the tip of Lily's tongue to disagree and stay to help before she realized they were planning a Christmas surprise. With a smile, she walked away to her bedroom.

She spent an hour with her hair, trying various hairstyles before deciding to leave it down. Her makeup took half an hour and changing into her dress and shoes the other half. In two hours, she walked down the guest staircase of the Potters, ready to play the part of hostess.

James had to lock his jaw to keep from gasping when he saw her. He was used to Lily looking pretty but never this, this gorgeous.

Her hair was curling gently, falling down her back with apparent ease. She wore a short black dress, the one she had found in her wardrobe. She had nothing around her neck because she hadn't found any jewelry she felt matched. Her shoes were high black stilettos that oozed with class. Her face lit up when she saw him.

"Don't you look dazzling?" Lily said when she reached him. James stood before her in a simple white shirt with black pants. He wore a thin emerald colored tie that matched her eyes.

"You took the words out of my mouth, Kooks." James replied. Holding his arm out to her, he asked, "shall we?"

She nodded and took his arm. They walked down the stairs together, grinning at the others.

"You both look great," Sirius said honestly. His eyes looked over Lily appraisingly. "You're gorgeous, Evans. Where've you been hiding that body?"

Lily laughed with delight as the others added their compliments. "You boys are too sweet. What've you done, broke some expensive vase?" She teased.

"No mademoiselle, nothing's broken if you can believe it. Starry kept us on our toes." Remus replied.

"Well let's let the guests in, shall we?" Peter asked, walking over to open the door to let in the crowd.

There stood nearly a hundred couples before them, all teenagers dressed to the nines. Lily nearly gasped when she saw them, all of them.

"Hello everyone!" James called out. "Welcome to the Potter Ball! Please leave your coats with the house-elves and follow the candles to the ballroom."

Lily waved when she saw Mary walk in with Marlene. The girls hugged while the boys grinned at each other.

"This place is stunning." Mary exclaimed. "If I lived here, I'd never even bother going to Hogwarts."

James shrugged. "It's just home, Mary."

"You should see it when his parents throw a ball," Marlene said conspiratorially. "My mum used to bring me to keep James company. It was even more decked out than now."

"I can't even imagine it," Mary sighed. "It's so beautiful."

Lily smiled at James as she led them up the staircase to the ballroom.

The ballroom could easily fit a full-sized basketball court within its walls. The floor shined with the mahogany wood and silvery silk walls were framed on bottom and top by gold scrolling wood. A section of the room was quartered off as the dining area, leaving the rest for the dancing that would begin later. The tables were small and circular, leaving room for all those who wanted to sit there. There were golden plates engraved with the Potter crest, goblets of crystal, everything poured forth with riches.

Instruments played in the corner with invisible musicians. A medley of Christmas carols sounded.

James gave his guests half an hour before seating them. There was a floor plan, which Lily had spent hours working upon. She sat in the table James had chosen, a table with a beautiful white tablecloth and sprigs of mistletoe spread around decoratively.

At her table were James, Sirius, Remus, Peter, Mary, Marlene, and a girl from James's neighborhood, a witch who attended Beaubaxtons named Lavina.

"This place is lovely," Mary said as she looked around.

Lavina smiled, placing her hand upon James's arm. "Oui, c'est jolie." She paused. "I 'ave always loved spending my summers 'ere. I 'ave so many 'appy memories from zeez place."

"I feel so lucky to be living here," Lily said in a strong voice. "James's family is so kind to let me stay."

"Oui, zey are among ze most 'onorable families." Lavina squeezed his arm. "'E eez a lucky man." She fluttered her eyelashes.

James rolled his eyes but looked pleased at the attention he was receiving. Lavina was among the prettiest of the guests, all of whom were good-looking. It was amazing how stunning of a crowd had gathered.

"Ze ozzer boys are also so kind to us when we are 'ere," Lavina smiled at them. "Do you remember when we went swimming in ze pool at midnight?"

Sirius nodded eagerly as he took a bite of food.

"And ze time we 'ad ze campout in ze bedrooms?" Lavina said in a provocative tone. "Eet was a very memorable night, non?"

"It was great," Sirius smiled. "We've had some good times."

"Oui, some _very_ good times." Lavina's voice dripped with innuendo. "We 'ave 'ad some magnifique times."

"Campouts are tremendous fun," Mary jumped into the conversation. "We went on one this year. It was after the first Quidditch match."

"It was brilliant," Remus added quickly. He was fast on the uptake.

"And then there was the time we went swimming with the Giant Squid." Peter said. "Remember how Mary nearly drowned?"

James and Sirius rocked with laughter at the memory of Mary in her hot pink dress, swimming ashore. She had worn the dress on a dare and did not enjoy remembering it.

"Those were some fun times," Lily burst in to keep Mary from killing Peter. "We've had a lot of fun, haven't we?"

James looked at her. "We sure have, Kooks."

"What eez zeez 'Kooks'?" Lavina asked, looking directly at James.

"It's Lily's nickname," he explained, "it's short for 'kooky'."

"'Kooky'?" Lavina raised one of her perfect eyebrows. "Zat word means odd, oui?"

"Yes but not in a bad way," James said quickly.

"Zat eez a very interesting nickname. I am not sure I would enjoy 'aving someone call me odd." Lavina smiled again. "Do you remember ze name you gave me?"

James blushed as she continued.

"Eet was 'Charmant', wasn't eet?" She looked at the others. "Eet means 'charming'."

"We know what it means," Lily snapped.

"Ooh I did not mean to offend you, Leelee." Lavina said with a fake-hurt look. "I am very sorry, chérie."

Lily's smile was as fake as Lavina's expression of hurt. "It's fine, Lavina." She replied.

"C'est bonne?" She asked to make sure.

"Oui," Lily said scathingly.

James had felt the tension rising as they ate and was pleased when dessert was over and the dancing could begin. He smiled at his guests. "You'll help me open the dancing, won't you?" He asked.

Sirius grinned. "It'd be our pleasure."

Lavina looked expectantly to James, waiting for him to ask her to be his partner for the first dance.

"Will you do me the honor, mademoiselle?" He asked in a low voice.

"Of cour…" Lavina trailed off when she saw who he was asking.

Lily smiled as she placed her hand in James's. Sirius followed with Mary upon his arm. Remus grinned as Marlene was clinging to him. Lavina, with a small look of distaste, was holding onto Peter's arm.

James and Lily led their table to the center of the dance floor. "Thank you all for coming," he began, "I'm so glad all of you could make it. Enjoy the food, enjoy the music, have some fun. Happy Christmas!" He grinned at them as the music began to play. He pulled Lily close to him and they began to dance.

Lily lost count of the number of songs they danced to. She had twirled so many times, remembering to keep focus on one thing to keep her head. Laughing, she pulled him over to their table to take a break.

Lavina and Peter followed them to the table quickly.

"Dancing is glorious, isn't it?" Lily asked, forgetting her quarrel with Lavina in the midst of such joy.

Lavina didn't forget so easily. She smiled coldly at Lily before turning to James. "'Ave you two been dancing ze 'ole time togezzur?"

James nodded without taking his eyes off of Lily.

"'Ow dull. Eet eez much more fun eef you switch panuzzers every few dances." Lavina placed her hand upon his arm to get his attention. "James, I feel so sad zat you 'ave not asked me to dance!"

James snapped out of his reverie. "I'm sorry Lavina, I just haven't had a moment," he said politely before turning to Lily. "Are you tired?" He looked into her eyes, begging her not to be.

Lily was tired, though she'd never admit it. "No, of course not! I'm ready to dance again." She grinned at him, standing up.

"Mind if I take her, mate?" Peter asked. "One dance, I promise."

James looked at Lily helplessly before nodding. There was nothing he could do. He reached out his hand and escorted Lavina to the dance floor.

It seemed to be the longest dance in history. James felt himself growing old right then and there. Lavina kept trying to stare into his eyes and he kept looking for Lily. It was annoying, having a best friend as dense as Peter.

Peter and Lily danced together, keeping a distance from each other. Peter hadn't wanted to dance with her at all, truth be told, but he wanted to keep Lavina happy and that meant dancing with Lily Evans.

The song ended after a few more excruciatingly long rhythmic repeats. James led Lavina back to the table, trying to keep her as far off of him as possible. This proved difficult, however, with Lavina's iron grip upon his arm.

He watched Peter and Lily walk towards them. Throwing caution to the wind, he reached out and pulled her onto his lap.

Lily looked at him strangely but stayed there. It occurred to her that she was still meant to be his girlfriend in front of girls.

Lavina rolled her eyes at the sight and pulled Peter back onto the dance floor. With Lavina gone, Lily slid off of James's lap and into her own chair, though it was extremely close to his.

"Can I make a confession?" He asked quietly.

Lily nodded.

"I hated you dancing with Peter, even if he is one of my best friends."

There was a pause before Lily spoke.

"Can I make a confession?" She asked.

James nodded.

"I hated you dancing with Lavina, especially because she's French and gorgeous."

James looked at her with bright eyes. "Dance with me?"

"Every one."

They stood up together and walked out to the dance floor where they proceeded to ignore everyone else and dance as if they were the only two people alive.


	14. Glass Lake

Waking up the next morning was difficult. Mary, Marlene, and Lavina had all spent the night in addition the Marauders and Lily. Mary and Marlene were supposed to be in guest bedrooms scattered across the house but had opted instead to spend the night with the others in the sitting room between the bedrooms.

They had spread sleeping bags around the fire in the center, grinning after the party had ended at 2:00 AM. Lavina had decided to sleep in her own bed for beauty's sake but the others were curled up around the fire, talking long into the night.

The debris lay scattered around the room; half eaten marshmallows and empty Butterbeer bottles bore silent witness to the festivities. A sock without its mate lay forgotten in a corner.

Lily woke up before everyone else and was surprised to see she was face to face with James Potter. Their sleeping bags had been placed beside each other with considerable space between but during the night they must have rolled towards each other a few times. With a small contented sigh, she gazed at him.

His hair fell messily onto his pillow; his glasses in front of it, out of reach should he roll a few more times. His chest rose and fell with each breath. Lily smiled as his eyes fluttered open, looking at her a bit unfocusedly.

James fumbled for his glasses, putting them on and then looking at her again. "What are you staring at?" He asked. "Have I got drool on my face or something?"

Lily shook her head. "Nope, you're perfect." Her arm flew to cover her mouth.

"Perfect?" James looked at her with an amused expression. "How drunk are you, Kooks?"

"Not at all," Lily retorted.

James laughed quietly before reaching into his pocket. "Here," he said, pulling out a small box. "Open it now, before the others wake up."

Lily took the box curiously from him. She looked at him before opening it slowly.

Inside laid two objects. The first was a phoenix's feather quill, one of the rarest to own. Upon the tip was engraved a small lily flower.

The other object was a gold charm dangling upon a golden chain. It was a small locket with an engraving inside.

_To my beautiful Kooky,_

_All my love,_

_Your Smuggy_

Lily laughed when she read it, holding it close to her heart. With a wide smile, she looked at him. "You shouldn't have, James."

"It's nothing, Lily."

"It's more than nothing." She looked at him. "Will you help me put it on?"

James nodded, taking the chain from her hand. She swept her hair up as he scuffled with the chain for a moment before clasping it around her neck.

"How does it look?" She asked.

"Perfect," he replied softly.

Lily smiled. "Thank you so much James, for everything." Slowly, she reached out her hand to him, lying back down into her sleeping bag.

James mimicked her, lying down on his. He held her hand tightly and they both drifted off to sleep again.

The morning drifted quickly into afternoon and soon the entire set was awake and cheerful, laughing as they exchanged gifts.

Lavina looked on smugly as she held on to James's gift to her, a small golden mirror with her name etched in the gold and a small diamond on the 'i'. "Eet eez lovely, James. Merci beaucoup!" She smiled at him widely. "What did you git?" Lavina asked Lily, looking at her complacently.

Lily looked at James, who shrugged with a small half smile. Lily took the quill and showed her.

"Ooh 'ow lovely." Lavina's smile widened. "A quill eez vairy useful."

"Oh yes, definitely." She pulled on the chain around her neck. "Oh and he got me this."

Lavina gasped when she saw the necklace. "James, your kindness eez too much! Zat eez ze most stunning necklace I 'ave ever seen!"

Lily beamed at her, pulling it back out of her reach. "The mirror is lovely too," she said kindly.

Lavina rolled her eyes but refrained from speaking.

"So what are the plans for today?" Remus asked from his perch upon one of the armchairs.

"Quidditch?" Sirius suggested. "There're eight of us here. Four per team without a Seeker."

"Sounds good," James nodded. "Who're the Captains?"

"How about the girls?" Peter suggested after being poked in the ribs by Lavina.

"Brilliant." Sirius turned to them. "Which two want to be Captains?"

The other girls shrugged but Lily spoke up. "I think we should do boys versus girls." She smiled wickedly.

James and Sirius looked at each other with some surprise. Was it fair to have two of the best Quidditch players on one team?

"Er… alright…" James shrugged. "If they want it," he said in a whisper to Sirius.

"So let's go!"

The octet walked outside and enjoyed an extremely lively game of Quidditch, all except Lavina of course. She sat upon her broom but refused to fly far. With raised eyebrows, the other girls avoided passing her the Quaffle like the plague.

The game ended within a few hours, everyone freezing and laughing. It had been such a pleasurable way to spend the afternoon.

Sirius, Remus, Peter, Mary, and Marlene went off on some discovery adventure. Mary had asked to see the rest of the house, which the others deemed enjoyable.

Lavina retired to her bedroom, stating that she had a few letters she wanted to write.

James and Lily were left alone in the sitting room but they did not remain there for long.

"Want to see my favorite room?" James asked with a mischievous grin.

Lily nodded.

He led her out into the same golden hallways and up another staircase, to the fourth floor.

"We don't use this floor very often for entertaining," James explained, "it's too far away from everything else. My mum thinks it's mad to have so much space but my dad loves it. That's the atrium to the indoor gardens," he pointed to a room with wicker chairs, "it's my mum's get-away."

They walked through a small corridor that was hidden behind a large portrait of an older man. "That's my great-great-great-great-great-great-granddad," he said with a slight grin. "He built this place. He loved secret passages so he put in a load."

The corridor branched off into multiple directions. "Dead-ends," James told her as they walked. They followed the trail of brightly lit candles that adorned the thick stone walls. The trail stopped at a large circular mirror.

James calmly stepped through it, leading a shocked Lily along. The mirror passage led to a huge room.

Cerulean colored water lapped onto the pale white sand that covered the floor. The sky above was crystal blue, creating a stunning contrast between the white sand and azure waters. Palm trees stood tall, providing small patches of shade. Between two was a large hammock. Further away from the water was a small orchard with its entrance framed by blooming magnolias.

Lily was speechless as she turned in circles, trying to understand everything. She looked along the edge of the water and saw a small dock complete with a little boat. It was an amazing house.

"James, your house. It's… it's… it's… wow." She managed to get out.

He grinned at her amazed face. "Let's sit on the hammock," he suggested.

They walked to it, sitting together.

Moments passed in silence before James spoke.

"Tell me about your family," he said softly.

"What do you want to know?"

He thought for a minute. "Tell me about getting accepted to Hogwarts."

"We-ell… alright…" she paused, thinking of the memory. "The breakfast table was covered with foods. It was a Sunday and Sundays meant brunch with my mum, dad, and sister. We ate, laughing and swapping stories from our week. My dad told us about how one of his patients was convinced that they were continually ill while they were perfectly healthy. My mum regaled us with stories from her work in the thrift shop where she volunteered every morning to help the less fortunate. Petunia and I talked about how much we adored our day camp, failing to mention our extremely handsome counselor on whom we both had a crush. It was such a silly crush, really, seeing as how he was so much older than Petunia and I were.

"That morning, while my mum placed a heaping of scrambled eggs and bacon upon my plate, Petunia passed a letter to me. 'It's so strange,' she giggled. Indeed it was, with the curvy emerald writing that was at once foreign and well-known. I slid it open with my finger, obtaining a teensy paper-cut that I ignored at the interest of receiving post. It was rare for me or Petunia to get a letter.

"I opened it and gasped. It fell into my breakfast plate, that's why there are bits of yellow on it (scrambled eggs) and a drop in the shape of a heart (tea). My mum took it and read it, her eyes widening. 'It can't be, can it?' She asked, placing one hand upon her heart.

"'It is!' I shouted. 'I'm a WITCH! I'm a W-I-T-C-H!' I was big on spelling that year.

"I had known before, Petunia and I did. Severus Snape told me when I was nine so I wasn't extremely surprised, only excited. I knew all about Hogwarts, though I hadn't told my parents about it. Petunia knew but it was our secret, especially because she didn't believe in it until I got my letter.

"Later I found out she had written to Dumbledore, begging admittance. He refuse her, extremely politely of course, but that was the end of our friendship. My parents were proud of me though. They were so happy at having a witch in the family." She smiled at the memory of her parents.

James had been watching her speak and listening carefully to her words. When she spoke of her sister, her face clearly fell. Speaking of her parents, however, brought turned a light on within her eyes. "They were right to be proud of you," he said.

Lily turned to him. "Oh I haven't the slightest idea if they are right to be proud of me. I'm dreadfully clumsy, awkward, and I haven't a clue what I want to be when I finish school. It's pretty bad." She smiled as she spoke though, undermining the tone. "What do you want to be?"

"I think I'm going to follow in my dad's steps. He's an Auror and works constantly to defeat Voldemort." James sighed. "And they need all the help they can get."

"That sounds smart," she nodded, "and very gallant."

He grinned at her. "Gallant? Adding it to my list of words."

She rolled her eyes. "You're such a twat."

He started to reply but she shushed him. "Listen," she whispered.

They spent the rest of the day lying on the hammock in the beach room that was located in James's house, listening the waves gently lapping upon the beach.

* * *

**Author's Note**: Thanks for all of the reviews! It's SOOO great to be back home. ) 


	15. The Macdonalds

"Welcome to our humble home," Mary Macdonald said with a smile as she led the others to her house. It was the day before New Year's and Mary had invited them to spend the day at her house.

The house was a small cottage built of dark gray stone. Its appearance would have been gloomy if not for the cheerful additions of snowmen in the yard (holding wands and wearing pointed hats) and the happy voices of many girls.

"This is my mum," Mary said, hugging a very tall and stately looking woman.

"Hallo pets," Mrs. Macdonald said kindly. Her face, lined but jovial, broke into a smile as she embraced her daughter. "The others are in the house. Lari is home with the girls," she added to Mary.

Mary's entire person seemed to grin. "Lari's here? I'm so glad. I haven't seen her in ages."

"Then go on in, pet." Mrs. Macdonald looked at the others. "Go on, everyone. The girls are inside."

Mary led them into the small cottage. Lily was surprised to see how roomy it was, something that wasn't obvious from its tiny exterior. "Enlarging spells," Marlene whispered, noticing the surprised look upon Lily's face.

They walked past a small kitchen where three girls were seated. Lily recognized a few of them.

"This is my sister Nati. She's two years behind us at Hogwarts," Mary explained while she hugged her sister. Nati was a tall brunette with her gently waved hair falling down onto her face.

"Ooh I know you!" Sirius said happily. "We went to Hogsmeade together last year."

"Yes, we did." Nati nodded calmly.

"And you ditched me for that Ravenclaw boy, that prefect." Sirius's handsome face turned downward. "That wasn't very nice."

She laughed. "Sorry Sirius. Let's think of it this way, it saved me from you breaking my heart."

"Ach well…" Sirius grinned at her, "We may have to rectify that first date."

Nati rolled her eyes but looked pleased. A small cough came from the little girl beside her.

Mary smiled at her youngest sister. "This is Fay. She's not at Hogwarts yet but she will be soon."

Fay was a brunette, like her two older sisters. She had a thin face that would someday grow into a great beauty.

"Hi," said the future beauty quietly.

"Hello Fay," the others chorused, smiling at her.

"And this is Della. She's in 6th year." Mary placed her arm gently around Della's shoulders. Della was a pale beauty, stunning to look at but also haunting. There was an element of mystery around her, something that no one could completely place. The other girls, though all pretty, didn't have the stunning beauty of Della. It was obvious that Della was the most beautiful of the nine Macdonald girls.

Della gave them a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

"Do you know where Lari is?" Mary asked.

"She's with the twins in the den," Nati replied.

They left Mary's three sisters, all of whom were in various states of relaxation. Fay had been drawing while Nati read. Della had been staring out the window, looking unseeingly before her.

The den was also small but cheerful. Mary's entire house could fit into the foyer of James's and yet both were pleasant. Mary's was quaint, small and loving. James was large but equally filled with love.

"Lari!" Mary shouted when she saw her.

She had dirty blonde hair that fell down to her waist. Her eyes were deep pools of chocolate. Her small hands held the even smaller hands of two little girls.

"This is my oldest sister, Lari, and her two daughters. That's Abby and that's Gabby." Mary grinned, hugging her nieces.

Remus was the first to speak. "Er hello," he said with a small grin.

Lari smiled at him warmly. "Hey everyone. It's lovely to meet you all but you'll have to excuse me. It's time for my witches' nap." She laughed as the two little girls, both blonde like their mother, tried to run away and play. Sirius caught one of them and James the other.

The girls looked up at them beneath their long eyelashes. "You've got some flirts, here," James said with a grin.

"Oh definitely. But I'll save you lot from falling in love with them," Lari laughed, scooping the girls into her arms. "I'll see you later, Mary." She kissed her sister's cheek.

"If you see Caty, Ela, Carling, or Ads can you tell them I'm home?" Mary asked, sitting down upon the floor near the fireplace.

Lari nodded as she left, leaving the boys in a state of awe.

"She's married," Mary said warningly but with a sparkle in her eyes.

"Damn," Sirius muttered.

Remus laughed. "You can't have all the Macdonald sisters, Paddy. You've got  
Nati for a date, leave one for me!"

The others sat down around the small room, gazing around at the place where Mary was raised.

"It's small, I know. But it's home." She smiled. "It's nice to come back."

"Is that my Mary I hear?" A voice called out.

"Caty!" Mary squealed, running with open arms to her sister. They embraced for a moment before Mary turned to the others. "Do you remember Catherine? She finished last year."

Catherine hugged James, grinning at him. "How goes the team, Potter?" She asked. Catherine had played Seeker.

"It's alright. I have to play Seeker though. No one's near as good as you are."

Catherine giggled, hugging Sirius next. "Breaking many hearts, Sirius?"

"Of course!" He grinned at her. Sirius and Catherine had had a fling last year. It had ended quickly but left them as good friends.

Three more girls walked in, resulting in more hugging.

"Carling, Adelcia, and Athela," Mary explained in between hugs.

"But we prefer to be called Carrie, Ads, and Ela." The youngest looking one said. "I'm Carrie, first year." She had curly strawberry blonde hair and a handful of freckles sprinkled across her face.

"Ela, second." Athela had the same colored hair as Carling but it was much shorter and straighter. Her face was thinner and lacked the freckles.

"And I'm Adelcia." The boys gave Adelcia an appreciative look. Her long brown hair was curled at the ends, giving her an air of kindness somehow. Her face was thin like Athela's and had the same mysterious eyes as Della. "I'm a 4th year."

"You're in the Slug Club, right?" Lily asked, referring to the small group of students Professor Slughorn patronized.

Adelcia nodded. "I hate it though."

"Me too," Lily rolled her eyes. "I just don't want to lose my grade."

"Likewise," Adelcia smiled at her. Lily knew she had found a fellow ally, someone she could now talk to during those dreadfully boring dinner-meetings that were held once a month.

Mary smiled as her other sisters walked in, creating a loud but happy atmosphere. The room was spilling over with laughter as the girls entertained their guests with stories.

Lily sat beside Adelcia, exchanging horror stories of dealing with the Slug Club. James was talking Quidditch strategy with Catherine and Nati. Remus, Marlene, and Fay were laughing wildly as Carling entertained them with her parodies of the professors. Lari sat beside Mary and spoke quietly with her sister, loving the closeness. Even Lavina, who had tagged along from lack of anything better to do, was enjoying herself, talking to Athela about clothes and gossip. Only Della sat apart from everyone, though not physically. Della's haunting near-black eyes stared out the window. Sirius was watching her, though she didn't notice it.

"Do you still fancy Sirius?" Lari asked quietly, looking at Mary.

Mary shook her head. "No… I've realized that, while he's a brilliant mate, he'd make a crap boyfriend. I'm alright with our flirty fun."

"Does Nat realize he'd be crap as a boyfriend?"

"I think so. I talked to her about it before the holidays, when I told her I was over my crush. Caty and I both did."

"Good. I'm glad you did. Nat's smart. She only thinks it'd be fun to go out with him for a laugh and a story."

"I'm glad she's smart." Lari looked at Sirius, who was still staring at Della. "He seems to be interested in Del."

Mary didn't reply, she was too busy watching Sirius watch Della.

Sirius gazed at her, watching Della's aloofness with a sort of tenderness. He walked over to her after a few more minutes, plopping himself down comfortably beside her.

"You don't mind, do you?" He asked with the smile that usually won over any girl.

Della shrugged, still looking out the window at the snow.

"So you're behind us a year?" Sirius said, looking at her.

She nodded, not speaking.

"Do you not talk?"

Della gave him a piercing look. "I talk."

"Just not to me?"

"Basically."

"Why's that?"

"Because."

"Is two words your maximum statement? Because the longest thing I've heard form you is 'I talk'." He spoke teasingly.

"Maximum is three." She finally looked at him, her eyes smiling a little.

"See, I knew you could do it. I'm bloody proud of you, Della. You can talk."

Della rolled her eyes and turned away from him.

Sirius attempted conversation a few more times before giving up. There was something about her, something aloof that kept him wanting to find out much, much more about her.


	16. Misconceptions

Lily and James progressed, slowly, from enemies (at least on one part) to friends. The progression from casual friendship to confidant came quicker, taking instead of three years only a few months. To all who witnessed the development it became painfully obvious what would follow. To all except the parties involved.

James sat with his head in his hands, gazing out at the nearly empty Gryffindor Common Room.

"What's up, Prongs?" Sirius asked as he slid into the armchair beside James's. "Why so glum?"

James sighed. "We're past the holidays and Lily and I are still 'just friends'. I'm trying to be patient, I really am!"

"I know, James, but it'll take her a while. I mean, it was just a year ago that she hated your guts. Remember how she bewitched a saucepan to follow you around and smack you on the head every time you said something cocky or rude?"

"I remember," James smiled thinly, appreciating his best friend's attempt to cheer him up. "But I still wish I was dating her. And now she's gone cold all of a sudden, ignoring me and freezing up when I enter the room."

Sirius scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Did you do anything that might've offended her?" he asked.

"No, I've been good all year, remember? I haven't done anything cocky or rude."

"Perhaps she's scared to like you?"

"What?"

"You know. Scared to fancy you."

"Why would she be scared of that?"

Sirius shrugged. "Who knows? She's a girl and they're off their rockers, mate. They're completely psychotic."

James nodded fervently. "But I haven't a clue why… unless…"

* * *

Lily sat in class, glancing occasionally at Professor Slughorn. He was lecturing about the properties of alkinia combined with aleron and camoil. She jotted the occasional note even though her mind was not focused. 

A scene kept replaying before her eyes. It made her squirm, watching and replaying it to watch again. She leaned back against her desk and tried to focus upon the lesson, unsuccessfully. After ten minutes of nervous fidgeting that earned her a dirty look from Professor Slughorn, she succumbed to the memory, allowing it to fill her consciousness.

_It was their last night at the Potters. Snow had fallen upon the ground earlier that morning, covering the tracks they had made over the course of two weeks. The house-elves were busy packing care packages._

_Everyone had arranged to meet in the sitting room at half past eight to spend one last night together. Remus, Sirius, Peter, Mary, and Marlene were all gathered around the fire that burned in the center of the room. Only James and Lavina were missing. Sirius had volunteered to search for James while Lily, taking pity on her friends, had agreed to find Lavina, even if she didn't want to. _

_Lily walked across the giant house she had grown accustomed to. She passed the rooms she had spent countless hours in, laughing or just relaxing. There, on her right, was the library that Mr. and Mrs. Potter frequented, their get-away, so to speak. Indeed, there they were sitting together._

_Mrs. Potter's bright blonde hair was curled gently, barely reaching her shoulders. Her matronly figure was clad in a simple dress that fell to the floor, navy blue in color. Beside her sat Mr. Potter, dressed in a comfortable pair of tweed pants and a white shirt. They were both reading, leaning against each other and reading. Lily felt as though she was intruding by passing, seeing them sitting so calmly, so engaged in their own thoughts and yet engaged in each other. She watched as Mr. Potter absentmindedly stroked his wife's hand while turning the pages of his book with the other._

_Watching them, seeing them act so lovingly toward each other convinced her that that was what she longed for in a relationship. However, hesitant to stay and watch them any longer, she walked further down the hall._

_She passed some of the guest bedrooms James had told her about. There were so many of them! The hall went on for ages, so it seemed, before Lily managed to get to Lavina's room._

_She knocked but didn't hear anyone reply. A moment later, she knocked again. She heard someone say "Come in" and so she did._

_Lavina was sitting upon her bed, her hair extraordinarily messy. She was adjusting her sweater as Lily walked in. A pair of glasses that seemed oddly familiar to Lily lay forgotten on the nightstand beside the bed. The windows were open, letting in the cold air._

"_I'm sorry, did I wake you?" Lily asked, her brain working slowly._

_Lavina laughed. "Ooh no, __chérie__, I was not sleeping. I was, 'ow you say, 'aving a beet of fun? __Oui__, zat. I was 'aving a beet of fun." _

_Lily stared at Lavina._

"_Oui, chérie__, fun eez fun, no?" _

"_Er… yes… fun is fun…" she faltered. "Er… I'm uh… here to tell you that we're… er… meeting up in the sitting room…"_

_Lavina smiled haughtily. "I know." _

_Lily nodded at her before fleeing. She ran into the hallway, where she bumped into James._

_He looked extremely disheveled, his hair more so than usual. His glasses were gone._

"_Where are your glasses?" She asked, her voice oddly calm._

"_I can't find them!" James said loudly. "I had them in my room but now they're gone."_

_Lily looked at him closely. "Did Sirius find you?"_

"_Er no? Was he meant to?"_

"_Yes. That's why I'm down here. Looking for Lavina. He's looking for you."_

"_Oh… well I haven't seen him."_

"_Why are you down here?"_

_James shrugged. "I went searching for my glasses."_

"_All the way down this hall?" Lily asked incredulously._

"_Er yeah?"_

_She didn't say anything. Lavina had walked out of her room with a pair of black glasses dangling from one hand._

"_James chérie, I 'ave your glasses," she spoke smugly, giving Lily a pitying look as James took them from her._

"_Well now you've found them so if you'll excuse me," Lily walked away from them quickly, practically running. She didn't want to go to the sitting room with the others so she escaped to the place only she and one other person knew about. It didn't seem likely that that other person would show up seeing how he was… busy with someone else at the moment._

Lily felt the familiar bitter taste enter her mouth as she dwelt upon the events. Seeing James and Lavina acting that way had made her feel extremely unpleasant, though she had no reason to. He was, after all, only her friend. She should be happy he had a significant other. She was supposed to be excited for him, ready to hear about how much he loved her. And yet, why did the thought of James loving Lavina make her want to throw up the delicious breakfast of scrambled eggs on toast with pumpkin juice that she had scoffed down that morning? It was mystifying, this entire fiasco.

James sat across the room from Lily, watching her shake her head oddly. Something was up with her, though what it was he didn't know.

* * *

**Author's Note**: I'm doing my best to keep up with my stories but it's getting harder and harder as I'm getting more involved in school stuff again, though it hasn't even started yet! I'm working on two of my six college applications and a load of IB work and then tennis practice and an Extended Essay and it's just quite difficult. But I _am _trying, I promise! Expect another update in a couple more days on this one. My other story, Sleeping on the Job, is coming along but it's a lot harder to continue. Wish me luck and thanks for all the reviews!!! 


	17. There's Only So Much

Lily attempted, over the course of the next few weeks, to keep every exchange she had with James civil and friendly, emphasis on friend. By doing so, she only managed to succeed in driving herself mad.

They sat together one February night in the Head's Room. They had spent an hour working on Hogsmeade weekend dates as McGonagall had asked them to. The conversation had been stilted and, as she knew, the blame lay on Lily's head.

"So… er… um… how're things?" Lily asked, attempting to engage him in a **friend**ly conversation.

James looked at her oddly as he answered. "They're fine… how're you?"

"Great…" Lily had no idea what else to say. She started to gather her papers and make ready to leave. She was nearly standing when he spoke.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

The question reminded her of an ex-boyfriend of hers. Every time they disagreed or argued, he'd ask "what's wrong with you?" which ultimately led to the demise of the relationship. She hated when he asked that, phrasing it that way. Why was something bloody wrong with her? Couldn't there be something wrong with someone else?

"Er… okay… there can be something wrong with me…" James said, looking at her strangely.

"Are you telepathic?" She asked, honestly considering that option. Besides telepathy, how could he have possibly known what she was thinking?

"Er no. You spoke aloud," he explained.

She wanted to die when he told her that. She sunk down into her chair, leaning her head against the seat.

"So er… can you uh… tell me what's wrong?" James tried again. There had to be a way to fix this.

Lily looked at him. "What do you mean? Fix what?"

"This, this whole thing between us. What's bothering you, Lily?"

"Nothing? I'm fine?" Her statements came out like questions.

"Sure you are, Lily. Please tell me what's bothering you."

"Nothingsbotheringmehowslavina?" She said quickly.

"Sorry, didn't quite catch that. What'd you say?"

Lily took a deep breath. "Nothing's bothering me. How's Lavina?"

"I haven't the slightest idea how Lavina is," James answered, looking at her strangely. "I haven't talked to her since my house. Why?"

This answer was worse than what she was expecting. That meant James was flighty and merely involved with Lavina for the physical relationship.

"Can't I ask about someone without my motives being examined?" Lily snapped.

"Touchy, aren't you?"

Lily glared at him.

"Lily, please tell me what's wrong." James said softly. "Something's bothering you."

She didn't speak.

"Come on, please tell me?" He smiled so charmingly that Lily thought her heart would break. How could someone who looked so innocent be so flighty?

She kept her silence, even though she longed to say something.

"Tell me what I did wrong. I mean really, lay into me. Make me regret whatever I did." He spoke lightly, hoping to evoke a smile. When that failed, he continued to speak, though this time only voicing his thoughts aloud. "What did I do? I haven't cursed anyone lately. I gave up on dueling ages ago. Quidditch hasn't been played lately so you can't be mad at me for losing—not that we'd ever lose. My pranks have also been at a standstill since Christmas. You didn't recently find out our big Marauder secret since you've known forever. Snape hasn't messed with me nor I him so that's not it." James looked at her, "Come on, tell me, please Kooks?"

The use of her nickname made her want to cry but she didn't. Instead, she swallowed and then spoke.

"You haven't misplaced your glasses lately, have you?" She asked coldly.

"Misplaced my glasses?" James repeated, looking extremely confused and, of course, adorable.

"Lost them. Placed them somewhere you can't remember. Like Lavina's nightstand?"

"Oh!" Understanding flooded James's face. "That's what you're mad about! Merlin, I thought you were upset about something important!"

Lily looked at him haughtily. "Dating someone, or snogging them at least, is fairly important."

"Dating? Snogging?" He gazed at her incredulously. "Wait. Do you think I'm seeing Lavina?"

"Aren't you?"

James started to laugh. "Lavina? Seeing her? Merlin, I'd go insane if I dated her. Of course I'm not dating her!"

Lily glared at him. "So that's why you were near her bedroom, hair messed up and glasses on her nightstand?"

"I have no idea how my glasses got there. And my hair could never be messy, what are you on about?" He joked, running a hand through the strands that were always going in different directions.

"Sure you don't, James. Listen, you don't have to explain anything to me. It's none of my bloody business."

James sobered up. Until that moment, he had thought the entire affair was funny. Now it was just getting annoying.

"It's every bit your bloody business. It's you I fancy. I've fancied you for ages, as you very well know."

"You fancy me and yet snog Lavina?" Lily raised an eyebrow. "Doesn't seem like you fancy me much now does it?"

"For the last time, I haven't snogged Lavina! I was looking for my glasses! I have no idea how they got to her room. I guess she put them there to make you mad. She hates you." He said the last bit calmly.

Lily glared at him. "I wonder why?" She asked sarcastically.

"Because of me, I know. I'm awful, terrible, horrible. I'm a prat and a twat and a prick and an idiot. I'm responsible for every wrong assumption you make. I'm also responsible for the fact that you can't decide if you bloody fancy me or not. I'm destined to be driven mad by you and I know. But yes Lily, it's all my fault. Everything's my fault." Lily spilt the ink that had been resting upon the table beside her during his speech. James glanced at it before speaking again. "Oh yes, my fault too. It's always my fault, everything is. Whatever, Lily. Blame it on me." James stood up, giving her one last glance before walking away.


	18. Quidditch Boxers

"Oye James! I need a favor!" Sirius said as soon as he found James.

James looked up from his seated position upon the floor in the Astronomy Tower. "What do you want?" He asked.

"Post this for me, will you?" Sirius held up an envelope.

James was instantly suspicious. "Why can't you post it yourself?"

"Because I can't."

"Who's it to?"

Sirius sighed. "Can't tell you."

"Can't or won't?"

"Won't."

"What happened to the whole no secrets bit we had going on?"

"It went kaput?"

"Come on, Padfoot. Be serious."

"Oh but I am Sirius."

"Lame joke."

Sirius bowed his head. "I know."

"Who's the letter to, Paddy?"

"No one."

"You're just going to post a letter to no one?" James raised an eyebrow at him.

"No, _you_ are going to post a letter to no one." Sirius replied.

"No, I'm not. I refuse to send any letters unless I know who they're to."

"Nosy prat."

"Is it to a girl?"

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Is everything always about girls?"

"Nice try at changing the subject and throwing me off the scent, Padfoot. It's to a girl. Now what girl is it to?" James knit his eyebrows thoughtfully. "It's not Mary Macdonald 'cos you'd just talk to her. And Nati's dating that bloke from Ravenclaw. Marlene you'd talk to too. And it could be a letter to Lily, pretending to be me and apologizing for upsetting her and setting things right but you're not nearly clever enough to do that, no offense. So who's it to, Padfoot?"

"Fine. I'll tell you if you promise not to make a big deal out of it." Sirius plopped down beside James and told him whom the letter was to be posted to.

"Bloody hell!" James exclaimed when he found out. "You are clever! Who'd have thought? Of course I'll post it for you."

Sirius grinned. "I am clever, Prongsie. I'm the King of Clever. You should do it too."

"Do you think it'd work?"

"Maybe. No harm in trying, is there?"

"Suppose not."

"Go write."

"Nah. I'm not stealing your idea. Gimme your letter, you twat. I'll go post it now."

"Thanks mate," Sirius said gratefully.

James gave him one last grin before snatching the envelope from Sirius and running to the Owlery.

* * *

"Should I talk to him?" Lily asked, leaning against the headboard of her four-poster bed. She looked around at her fellow roommates. Kyna McMillian was leafing through a book of charms while Neala was busy studying herself in the mirror, determined to put Lily to shame the next time James saw the two together. Mary was writing to her youngest sister, filling her letter with descriptions. And Marlene sat upon her bed, looking at Lily with rapt attention. Her notes, which she had been studying, lay abandoned beside her. 

"I think you should," Mary replied, looking up from her letter. "He's probably daft with worry."

Neala shook her head. "I think you shouldn't, Lily. It would only make things worse."

"Everyone knows you fancy him, Neala. Stop trying to sabotage their relationship," Marlene snapped, looking up from her letter. "It just makes you seem childish."

"I was giving my opinion, Marlene. She did ask for them." Neala retorted.

"As if you were doing it to help her."

"How do you know I wasn't?"

Marlene snorted. "Everyone knows you fancy the Quidditch boxers off of him."

"How do you know he wears Quidditch boxers?" Mary asked with interest. "That's a very particular fact."

"I was assuming he did, Mary. I don't know if he does or not." Marlene replied slowly before turning back to Neala. "I'm right, aren't I?"

"Like you're a sodding saint, Marlene McKinnon! Everyone knows how much you fancy Remus Lupin!" Neala said, glaring at her.

"You've been left in the dark, Neala. I don't fancy Remus Lupin anymore, though I did. And even if I did, if one of my friends was practically dating him and obviously in love with him, I'd never go against them. Haven't you ever heard of hos before bros?" Marlene shot back.

"Practically dating? Obviously in love?" Lily echoed Marlene's previous statements. "Excuse me but as the friend in this situation, I didn't know either of those facts and I don't think they're true."

Marlene rolled her eyes. "You don't think they're true because you're too bloody blind to realize that you, quite like Neala, fancy the boxers off of James."

"Aren't they Quidditch anymore?" Lily joked, attempting to light up the atmosphere.

"Alright Lily, whatever. You fancy the bloody Quidditch boxers off of James Potter." Marlene shrugged. "Linguistics."

"Marlene darling, I think you're a bit mistaken. I don't fancy the boxers, even if they're Quidditch, off of anyone, let alone James Potter." Lily said softly.

Marlene sighed loudly. "Yes, you do. You're in love with him, Evans. Get it through that thick skull of yours. Go over to him, apologize for jumping to the wrong conclusions, and snog him silly."

"Hm… I think I'll do the first two. Definitely **not** the last one, though." Lily pondered for a moment. "How do I go about apologizing?"

"Well Lily, an apology usually begins with 'I'm sorry for' and ends with 'please forgive me'. It's really not that hard." Marlene said, rolling her eyes.

"You're in a right mood," Lily replied.

"I'd better quit while I'm ahead," Marlene smiled at her. "I'll be nice again after a bit."

"Good," Lily muttered. "And now I'm off to find James Potter and his Quidditch boxers._  
_

* * *

_Hallo._

_I'm sure you're wondering who this is, _she read, _but I can't really tell you that. I'd normally tell you but I'm pretty sure my reputation precedes me on this one. I'm sorry for being aloof and mysterious but who knows? Maybe it'll be useful and alluring._

_So I'm sitting in the Astronomy Tower, writing you. The sun's setting over the lake and it looks pretty neat. The sun's casting out these bright red rays out onto the lake and it clashes with the blue but it doesn't clash in an awful, sordid looking way. It clashes in an opposites-attract way. That's what I'm hoping for, by the way, that we, as opposites, will attract._

_Of course, I'm completely attracted to you. Wait. That's a bit forward, isn't it? I'll put it this way: I __think__ I'm attracted to you, even though we've only had one conversation. That doesn't narrow it down, by the way, because I'm sure you've met plenty of people who nurse secret crushes upon you. You're just that pretty of a girl. Rather, that beautiful of a woman._

_You really are beautiful, by the way. Your hair, your eyes, everything about you is perfect. But there I go, waxing poetically before I even know if you care about me. Of course, I won't know if you __really__ care about me until you meet me after all these letters. If you meet me._

_Don't judge me for anonymity. Even though the castle's a pretty big place, I'm pretty sure I registered at least once upon your radar. I hope. Man, you really know how to make a guy feel unimportant, love. I honestly haven't got a clue if you even know I exist. That's a pretty strange feeling for someone like me._

_Okay, I'm done writing this to you. If I go on, I'll probably give away who I am and that won't do because I'm rather fond of this whole anonymous thing. I'm even going to make up a secret name for myself. _

_Love,_

_Prince Snagglypuffers_

She laughed at her admirer's name. Her roommates stared at her, eyes wide with shock at the sight of her laughing.

"What?" She asked sullenly.

"Nothing," they replied, surprised. Of course they were not nearly as surprised as she was.

* * *

**Author's Note**: Oof, all the reviews have made me QUITE happy!

To those who asked, IB is short for "International Baccalaureate", which is the program I'm in. Basically it means that I'll be able to study internationally and earn some college credits. It's technically a two-year program with an optional four-year one before. It's my final year of it (having taken **all** six years) and I've got a load of work left to do.

Besides IB I've also got tennis and SATs and college applications and scholarship applications so updates are fairly spontaneous. I am keeping with my two chapters an update promise, though!

Thank you for **all **the reviews!


	19. Imsorryforassumingyouandlavinasnoggedors

Lily searched for James for nearly a fortnight. The only times she saw him were during classes and during them they worked so hard that there was no time for her to speak to him. She had tried cornering him a few times at the end of class but he proved ever the elusive. If she hadn't known better, she'd have thought he had an Invisibility Cloak.

In a final act of desperation, Lily begged Sirius to help her.

"Please Padfoot? I need your help. I've got to apologize to him." Lily pleaded one day in the Gryffindor Common Room.

Sirius looked at her sadly. "Sorry Lily, I'm under strict control so as not to reveal to you his presence."

Lily nodded. "It's alright, I guess." She sighed as she leaned against the armchair before an idea hit her. She bounced off of the chair, nearly knocking over a few of the younger students.

"What's got into her?" Carling Macdonald asked Sirius as Lily ran past.

"She probably has an idea on how to win back her one true love." He winked at her. "But you didn't hear that from me."

Lily had flown out of the Common Room but she flew right back in. "What floor is your dormitory on?" She asked, not pausing to catch her breath.

Sirius gave her a strange look but answered. "The fourth, Lils."

"Keep everyone out of it till I come back, alright?" She said. She didn't bother to wait for a reply. She dashed out of the Common Room, galloping up the stairs.

"Mad, isn't she?" Carling said to Sirius.

"No," he shook his head, watching the fleeting figure of Lily, "she's in love."

---

James was sitting upon his bed, alone in the dormitory. He held a rag in one hand and his broom in the other. He was rubbing it carefully, trying to make certain that the wood would remain as shining as new.

He heard footsteps on the stairs and assumed it was one of the Marauders. "Come to help me?" he asked, glancing at the door as it flew open.

His jaw dropped as he saw before him an extremely disheveled Lily Evans. He stared as she walked in, breathing deeply. She walked until she stood before his bed.

"You. We. Air." She gasped.

James merely stared at her.

"Water!" She croaked.

James grabbed his wand and stood up. He walked over to her and muttered, "_aguamenti_," pouring the water into Lily's gasping open mouth.

"Thanks," she managed after swallowing three gulps.

"What do you want?" James asked coolly, leaning against his bed.

"To talk to you."

"Funny," he said, "it seems the roles are reversed. Normally _I'm_ the one who wants to talk to you."

"I'm sorry," she said quietly, switching her weight from one leg to the other nervously.

"For what?" James asked, looking at her.

He was going to make her do it properly. She was going to have to explain what she had assumed, what had upset her about it, and then apologize. The thought of explaining what seemed to be unexplainable made her feel sick.

"Well?" James prompted in a tone slightly warmer. He was looking at her carefully and she looked a bit green.

Lily took a deep breath. "Imsorryforassumingyouandlavinasnoggedorsomethingandimverysorryforbeingsosillyandmakingyougetmadatmeandimjustsosososososorrypleaseforgivemeidontknowwhyiassumedyousnoggedherbutthethoughtofyouandhermademesickandimjustsorryforassumingsomethingihavenorightassumingitsnotlikeihaveanyclaimtoyouatallsoimsorry."

"Er sorry?" James looked at her, "Mind repeating that a bit slower?"

"Alright." She sighed. "I'm sorry for assuming that something went on between you and Lavina. I had no right to assume anything or even get upset with you if there was something between you and her. I have no claim to you and I have no right to become upset at you having a relationship of some type with someone. I don't know what came over me but I'm extremely sorry."

"I know what came over you," he said quietly.

"You do? What?" She looked at him excitedly. Maybe he had a prognosis on her mental disease.

"It's common, trust me. I've suffered through it before, though I didn't go about it the same way as you. It's something that gnaws at your insides, isn't it?"

Lily nodded eagerly.

"Something that drives you mad, making you wonder what's going on?"

Another enthusiastic nod.

"It makes you do irrational things. Like yelling at someone for no apparent reason and not listening to their side of the story."

Lily looked down at the ground and waited for him to continue.

"Do you want to know what it's called?" he asked.

"Yes." Lily replied, looking at him.

"The green-eyed monster."

"A monster?" Lily raised an eyebrow at him. "I hardly think I was possessed by a monster."

"Try thinking not so literally, Kooks." Lily's heart leapt at the familiar nickname being used. "It's jealousy."

"Jealous? Of what?" She asked before she could help herself.

"Of Lavina. Of a relationship between me and Lavina." James answered. He looked at her calmly. "You were jealous."

"Was I really?" She stared at him. "But I don't fancy you."

James shook his head. "No Lily, you do fancy me. You're just too bloody stubborn to admit it."

"No I'm not."

"Yes, you are."

They stared at each other for a few moments before Lily spoke.

"I was jealous," she whispered.

"You were," James nodded.

"I fancy you," she muttered.

"You do."

"I never thought I'd be fancying you at all."

"I always hoped you would."

Lily sat down on the end of his bed weakly. "Why do you fancy me when I'm so bloody awful?"

"It's just 'cos of that, Kooks. 'Cos you're so bloody awful." He smiled at her, his cheeks nearly breaking beneath the weight of his dimples.

"Now what?" she asked quietly.

"Now we wait."

"For what?"

"For you to be ready to date me." James replied.

"But I thought I was? I fancy you…" Lily looked at him, extraordinarily confused.

"Yes, you do fancy me," he explained, "but you're not ready to _date_ me. You've still got to adjust to the idea of it. You need to _want_ to date me. I can't add a 1081st rejection to the list." He smiled at her. "I want you to want to date me, Kooks. And until you are, I won't ask you."

"When will I be ready, do you think?"

James shook his head with an amused smile playing at his lips. "Only you'll know that for sure, Lily."

"But how will you know then?"

"I'll know."

"Let's make a deal, just to make sure you know. I'll… I don't know… think of something…"

"No Lily, no deals. I'll know."

"Are you sure?"

James looked at her solemnly. "I'll know, Kooks. I promise."


	20. Los Dos

February turned into May with stunning speed. Flowers had begun to bloom as sunshine swarmed through the windows of the castle. The students had begun to spend their free time outside, though there was not much free time left for the Seventh Year students at Hogwarts. They tended to make the most of the sunshine by studying for hours by the lake.

Lily had yet to feel ready to date James. Even though she had tried to show him that she was nearly there, he knew instinctively that she wasn't ready yet. He somehow knew when she needed her space and when she craved his attention. He was in tune with her.

Everyone save Sirius sat at the lake. He was, as the Marauders told the girls, studying inside. This unusual statement was swallowed by the others, accepted merely because of the looks of secrecy that accompanied it.

Sirius sat beneath a painting of Gwendolyn the Weird on the fourth floor. There was a staircase to his left, though it rarely pointed in his direction. He was waiting nervously, tapping his hand against the cold floor.

"Hi," he said as soon as he saw her walk towards him.

"Hi," she replied quietly.

"Are you surprised?" he asked, looking at the ground.

She stared at the ground too. Silently, she nodded.

"Disappointed?" His voice nearly broke, he was that nervous.

Continued staring at the floor, nearly without movement. His heart was pounding so loudly he thought a swarm of hippogriffs had gone lose in it. After nearly a minute of such pain, she shook her head no.

"Well… er…" Sirius couldn't think of anything to say. He had spent so much time crafting those letters that he'd sent that he wasn't sure what subjects to touch upon.

She had an idea of what she wanted to talk about, though. "Is this a prank?" She asked suspiciously.

"What? No!"

"Then why did you write me?"

"Because I've fancied you since I saw you ages ago. I told you."

"No, _Prince Snagglypuffers_ told me he fancied me. Sirius Black said nothing of the sort."

"That's because I was nervous. I didn't want you to think I fancied you like I had fancied your sisters."

"How did you fancy them?"

"Fleetingly. I thought they were charming and good-looking so I dated them. It didn't work out, obviously."

"So how do you fancy me?"

"Strangely. I want to know what you'll say about something, how you'll react. Stupid as it sounds, I long to hear you laugh or talk." He glanced at her and saw a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "See? Even though I'm extremely mortified at the fact that you're laughing at me, I'm still happy because I know how you'll react. I know it's strange but that's the effect you have on me."

She looked at him carefully. Slowly, she pushed back a strand of her long hair.

"I know I'm a prat and going on and on about this but I'm desperate. I'm practically in love with you, and not just your outside though it is gorgeous. I'm in love with the girl from your letters, the one who made me laugh and think deeply. The one who challenged me and made me feel like nothing only to cheer me up later. I love you." Sirius stared at the ground. "I didn't think _this_ would happen," he said sadly. "I thought I could date you and then it'd all be done. That I'd be done thinking of you almost every second of every minute, that I wouldn't whine to my best mates about how confusing this all is. Merlin, I feel so much more sympathy for James. I don't know how he could go on with Lily like that. I'd have died. But anyway, I'm in love with you." He looked at her from underneath the eyelashes that had driven so many girls mad with envy. "Could you possibly love me too?"

There was a long pause before she replied.

* * *

Lily sat beneath an old oak tree, singing softly to herself as she studied her Transfiguration notes.

"_Tie a yellow ribbon round the old oak tree_," she sang before humming the rest. She had forgotten the words.

Someone filled them in for her, though. "_And I'll know you'll be back for me_," James Potter finished for her.

"You know that song?" Lily asked, looking at him with a smile.

"Yep. My mum used to sing it to me when I was a baby."

"And here I thought you knew nothing of Muggles," Lily teased.

"Oh no, I know plenty." He pulled a bouquet out from behind his back. "I know, for instance, that Muggles love magic tricks."

Lily clapped her hands with delight, looking at the flowers. "They're lovely," she smiled.

He bowed and handed them to her. "For you, m'lady."

"Why thank you, Smuggy." Lily held them close to her face and breathed in the scent. "They're wonderful."

James sat down beside her and they gazed out at the lake for a long, long time in silence.

The sun had begun to set while they sat there, sending golden red streams across the water. The water and the sun seemed made for each other, hugging them with all of its might.

After the sun set, darkness fell upon them. Still they sat in silence, gazing at the stars.

"James?" Lily said, breaking the quiet.

"Yes?" He asked absentmindedly, gazing out at the lake.

"Cover your eyes for a minute," she ordered.

James obediently clasped his hands upon his eyes. He didn't bother to ask questions knowing she'd answer eventually.

"Do you remember what I told you about a year ago under this tree?" Her voice was extremely distant.

"Can I uncover my eyes?" He asked instead of answering.

"No. Answer the question," she called.

"Yes, I think I remember."

"What'd I tell you?" She sounded so distant that James was momentarily alarmed.

"I seem to recall something about skinny dipping with the Giant Squid," he answered, a grin creasing on his face.

"Open your eyes." Lily ordered.

James opened them slowly, looking around for her in the shadows. It was a moment before he saw her but when he did, he gasped.

Lily stood within the lake up to her shoulders, her body completely covered by the water and the dark of night. The only thing he could see was her hair falling upon her bare shoulders. The moonlight hit her, illuminating her smiling face.

"What are you doing?" James asked incredulously.

"Skinny dipping with the Giant Squid," she answered cheekily. "What does it look like?"

"Get out of there!" He shouted. "You'll freeze, Lily!"

She merely laughed as she swam towards the edge, making sure her body was beneath the water at all times.

"Cover your eyes," she ordered again before summoning her clothes to her. Within a few minutes, she was dressed and fairly dry, though her hair was wet. She walked over to him, smiling widely.

"You're really something," James said, looking at her with adoration and amusement. "You're really kooky, Kooks."

She giggled as she slipped her arms around his waist. "James, please don't make me go swimming with him again to make sure you get what I'm getting at."

James looked at her deviously. "What _are_ you getting at?" he asked.

"James Potter! I want you to ask me out, right now!"

"Why on earth should I do that?"

Lily looked up into his eyes and smiled. "So you can kiss me," she whispered.

James held her close to him and leaned down, whispering in her ear. "Lily Evans, will you be my girlfriend?" he asked.

"Yes," she replied softly, leaning up to him.

Their lips met and Lily hadn't known something could feel this good. It was amazing, their first kiss. She melted into him, bliss evident in every cell of her being. As they broke away, she looked up at him with an impish smile.

"What are you thinking?" he asked, stroking her hair gently.

"That it's quite sad," she answered slowly.

"What's quite sad?"

"That it took me seven years to find out what a wonderful kisser you are." Lily grinned at him.

"Oh but I've been telling you that for ages. You just didn't listen."

"I'm listening now," she whispered.

* * *

Lily and James sat in the Gryffindor Common Room. His arm was wrapped gently around her waist while she leaned against him. Her hair was lying across both of their shoulders. They were studying for their N.E.W.T. in Potions and completely oblivious to the stares of the other students around them.

Neala saw them and felt her heart was broken.

Mary saw them and was very glad she had bet 5 Galleons on them dating.

Marlene saw them and laughed with joy.

Remus saw them and felt happiness with a mixture of relief.

Peter saw them and felt jealous of the connection the two had, the closeness.

Sirius hadn't seen them yet. He was walking into the Common Room clutching the hand of his love. He was both nervous and excited to show her off to his friends.

They stepped through the portrait together and walked straight to the Marauders and girls.

"This… this is my girlfriend," Sirius said, looking at his friends.

James grinned at him with delight while Lily winked, welcoming her into the circle of Marauder Girls.

"I'm so glad I've got you to help me deal with them now," Lily said. "It'll be much more fun."

James rolled his eyes. "Lily, we've only been dating for three hours," he commented.

"Oh but it's been a dreadfully boring three hours," she teased, leaning against him. She was about to kiss him but stopped, remembering where she was.

Mary broke the silence that had fallen. "I think," she said quietly, "we need to have some girl talk."

Lily nodded and the girls, Sirius's girlfriend included, raced up the staircase to their dormitory.

As soon as they reached their destination, they collapsed upon the beds, out of breath.

"So, tell us how you and Sirius started dating," Lily said with a wide smile.

"Oh yes, do tell." Mary's eyes were narrow.

The girlfriend sighed. "He wrote me letters."

"Letters?" Marlene echoed. "Sirius Black wrote you letters?"

"No. I didn't know it was Sirius until a few hours ago. Someone wrote me letters, signing them _Prince Snagglypuffers_."

"And you just decided to date whoever was the author of those letters?" Mary asked, her voice somewhat cold.

"No Mary, I didn't. I went to see who the author was out of curiosity. I was expecting some mousy third year, to tell the truth."

"Well that sure didn't happen," Mary said icily.

"Why aren't you happy for me?" She sounded sad.

"I'm scared for you. I'm scared you'll get hurt," Mary explained. "I don't want you to be hurt by him."

"He won't hurt me," she said confidently.

"He hurt me," Mary said slowly. "He hurt me even though he didn't mean to. That's his problem. He doesn't mean to hurt people. He probably doesn't even know he hurts them at all. He falls in love but it's only momentary."

Sirius's girlfriend stared at her. "Did he tell you he loved you?" she asked slowly.

Mary sighed. "No, he didn't."

"That makes all the difference then," she replied, "because he told me he loved me."

Mary looked at her younger sister closely, looking for signs of lying. Della, though normally aloof and silent, opened her arms to Mary. The two embraced, holding each other close.

"I just don't want you to get hurt," Mary whispered.

"I know," Della replied.

Lily and Marlene had been looking at each other awkwardly during this exchange. They waited until the sisters were done hugging before speaking.

"Do you know what I've got a craving for?" Lily asked with a wicked smile.

"What's that?" Marlene answered, catching on quickly.

"Pancakes!" The girls giggled, remembering Sirius chanting on the train ride to Hogwarts.

"Let's get some from the kitchens," Mary suggested.

Lily nodded. "James told me how to get there ages ago."

"James your boyfriend?" Marlene winked.

"James my boyfriend," Lily confirmed. "But let's not waste time. We can talk about that later. Now it's time for pancakes!"

* * *

**Author's Note**: One more chapter left! It feels so strange to be nearly finished! I may write a sequel though, once I get some more time. It's a seriously busy time for me but thanks for ALL of the reviews! They motivate me to write faster! Expect replies to them in my _sob_ final chapter!!! 


	21. Parting Is Such Sweet Sorrow

May faded away gently, giving June her crown of flowers. June, in her stead, blossomed with the love with which had been given so freely. At the end of her reign, the feeling was a mixture of bittersweet excitement.

The girls roamed the halls of Hogwarts, recollecting every occurrence that had happened within these walls that knew such happiness. Mary and Marlene, for they had been close throughout the entire stay at Hogwarts, walked together, laughing when a memory rekindled its flame within their hearts.

Lily walked along, pausing to bid farewell to many of the painted souls who had so often provided her with "little gems of wisdom", as they were apt to call it. She wished she could reach out and hug them but she knew that was impossible. She could merely content herself with the hope that the words she used could possibly convey the emotion she felt.

The suits of armor bowed as she passed, the ghosts smiled sadly. It was part of the tradition, to part with the students they had come to know and love. The Grey Lady of Ravenclaw passed Lily along her way to the tower, giving in place of her usual haughty glare a kind smile. Lily was pleased to be able to smile back.

Bidding farewell to Nearly Headless Nick nearly broke her heart. He had been a source of much conversation in her early years at Hogwarts, before she had blossomed into the girl that everyone knew now. He had sat with her in the library for so many years, comforting her as she raged with anger at the predicament James had thrust her into and later as she sobbed at the news of her parents' joint death. It was he who had cheered her up, he who ensured that Peeves would not force her into the spotlight in one of his cruel tricks. Lily held back tears as she gave Nearly Headless Nick a hug, even though it made her entire body feel like an icicle.

James was experiencing the same anguish at leaving Hogwarts. He roamed around anxiously with Sirius, Remus, and Peter. They walked as a pack to thank the house-elves for all the feasts they provided and all the cleaning they did. They went round to the Whomping Willow's secret passageway by the light of the crescent moon, recalling so many adventures.

As a group, they decided to thank the Fat Lady.

"Madam," Sirius bowed gallantly to her, "We, the Marauders, would like to thank you for all of the assistance you have provided throughout the years."

"Had it not been for your selfless generosity, many an adventure would have culminated in a punishment of the severest nature," James continued.

"The possibility of expulsion has been prevented countless times, thanks solely to you," Peter bowed his head in gratitude.

"So we, the Marauders, beg of you to accept this humble token of our gratitude," Remus smiled as two old and fat friars walked into the Fat Lady's portrait carrying a large barrel of wine. They were followed by the portrait of a little girl carrying a stunning arrangement of flowers.

"We thank you most sincerely for all of the nights you sat awake, waiting for us to appear," Sirius smiled widely.

"We also beg of you to allow us one last request," James said in a slightly wheedling tone.

The Fat Lady, who had already begun to drink from the barrel, raised a thick eyebrow at him. "Yes?" She asked somewhat nervously.

"We request permission to inscribe our names, or rather the monikers that we have chosen, upon the golden scroll of your frame. We avow that our signatures will in no way tarnish your exquisiteness. Indeed, the writing shall only be visible to those who know where to seek it." Sirius recited, though it did not sound memorized. The foursome had spent hours perfecting it to sound chivalrous and gallant, the tone that the Fat Lady adored.

She hesitated for a moment, her eyebrows knitting themselves in concentration. Slowly, her round mouth moved to speak. "Oh alright," she said with a small sigh.

Remus carved slowly with his wand, making certain that each letter was crafted perfectly. He then carved his name and stood aside to let Peter take up his writing. After Peter, Sirius beamed at his friends and signed. Finally, James took his wand in hand to pen his name.

When they finished, they stared at their handiwork.

_Noli nothis permittere te terere.  
Acta est fabula, plaudite!  
Misters Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs _

The Fat Lady had watched with growing curiosity as they wrote with such precision upon her frame. They had read the statements aloud and the Fat Lady was puzzled.

"What does it say?" She asked, cocking her head.

Sirius grinned. "Don't let the bastards get you down."

"And the second part means 'the play is over, applaud!'" James explained.

"You four have always been strange," the Fat Lady said, more to herself than to them.

Remus nodded quite seriously. "Yes madam, we have. But we have you to thank for allowing us to remain so."

The Fat Lady rolled her eyes and continued to drink the wine they had given her.

The boys walked into the Gryffindor Common Room, examining everything closely. The armchair they had singed during a particularly violent game of Wizard's Chess, the couches on which so many fond memories had been made (Sirius smirked upon recalling them), the secrets that had been shared in a dark corner. One secret in particular stood out in their minds.

_It was their second year and they were sitting as a group in the darkest corner. It was not a position they usually occupied, preferring to sit in the center and have attention lavished upon them._

"_So I suppose you don't want to be friends anymore," Remus Lupin said quietly, staring at the ground._

"_Are you mad?" James exclaimed so loudly that a few of the Gryffindors turned to see what the commotion was about._

"_Of course we want to be friends," Sirius said in a softer voice. "You're one of us, mate."_

"_You're in it for life," James added._

_Peter nodded. "We can't let you out now; you're one of our best friends."_

"_Besides," Sirius winked, "we'd have to kill you. You know too many secrets."_

"_Listen Remus, give us some time and we'll help you out, alright?" James looked at him seriously. "'Cos we're not the type of mates who ditch a fellow simply because he's got a furry little problem."_

_Sirius nodded gravely, adding, "Your problem is our problem, Remus. We'll do what we can to help you."_

_Remus had never felt so happy in his entire life. His three friends, friends who __**knew**__ everything, still wanted to be friends with him. They didn't run away screaming when they found out. They merely accepted it as a part of him, as calmly as if he had told them he was prone to getting head colds. It was such an amazing feeling, to be part of such a friendship._

Sirius broke the reverie that had fallen upon them. "I'm going to find Della," he said quietly. "I want to spend a few more hours with her at Hogwarts before I end this part of my life completely."

The others nodded, understanding. They were each going to go out on their own now, it was logical for it to begin first in the place that had brought them together.

Remus smiled at the remaining two before speaking. "I'm going to go walk around a bit, clear my head." He left quickly, following the path Sirius had trod.

"I'm off to find Lily. I promised we'd bid Hagrid farewell together." James patted him on the back before leaving him all alone.

Peter watched his retreating figure, calculating the time it'd take for him to be far enough away to slip off without James or any of the others knowing where he went. Finally, when he knew he had enough time, Peter walked out of the Gryffindor Common Room and into the Slytherin one.

* * *

Lily gazed around at her friends, some new some old. She laughed as she brought back one of her favorite memories, the one in where she had met the girls she called her best friends.

_First time getting ready to board the train to Hogwarts and Lily felt queasy, her stomach doing flips that belonged in a circus, not within her._

"_You'll be fine, Lily," her mother said as she hugged her tightly. _

_Her father merely smiled as they embraced, kissing her lightly on the forehead. "Make us proud, darling."_

_She tried not to cry as she stepped onto the train, looking around apprehensively at the loud boys and girls._

_The corridor between the compartments was filled with laughter and conversations. Students in various states of greetings clogged up the spaces, grinning and laughing. _

"_I had the most brilliant summer, Aelis," Lily heard a girl say, "I went to see Stonehenge and you should've seen the curses they put on that place! You know only Muggles see it as a pile of rocks. It's really this gorgeous place, loads of ancient writings. And loads of amazingly gorgeous guys!"_

_Lily stumbled through the corridor, catching sight of an empty one. With a deep breath, she walked in and sat down alone, gazing out of the window._

_She was only alone for a minute or so before she heard the door open. A short dark haired girl stood with a bitter look upon her face. "Compartment empty?" she asked._

_Lily nodded. "Er… yes…"_

_The girl's face broke into a smile. "Thank God for that. I've been roaming this stupid train trying to get away from my sisters! They're __**everywhere**__!"_

"_How many sisters do you have?" Lily asked curiously._

"_A lot." The girl grinned. "It's loony at my house."_

"_I've only got one sister."_

"_Really? What year's she in?"_

_Lily shook her head. "My sister's a Muggle. My whole family is, rather."_

"_Ooh I bet you know loads of stuff I don't then. My family's all magic and it gets sooo boring."_

"_Speaking of boring," another voice joined them as the door slid open, "the other compartments are not. Mind if I join you two?"_

"_Not at all!" The girl with lots of sisters replied._

"_I'm Marlene McKinnon. Who're you?" Marlene smiled at them widely._

"_I'm Mary Macdonald and this is…" she trailed off._

"_Lily Evans."_

"_So do you know anyone here?" Mary asked as Marlene settled into a seat beside Lily._

_Marlene nodded. "James Potter's one of my mates. His mum and my mum are brilliant friends."_

"_James Potter?" Mary giggled. "My sister, one of the littler ones, thinks he's cute!"_

"_Oh so you know him to?"_

"_Not him. My mum and dad go to balls at his house though."_

"_So do mine!" _

_Lily watched them quietly, listening as they exchanged information about the Potters and laughed. After a few minutes, Marlene turned to her with another wide grin._

"_I've come to a conclusion," Marlene began._

"_What's that?" Lily asked._

"_We're meant to be best friends." Marlene sang. "We'll be best friends foreverrr!"_

* * *

The train ride home was bittersweet. They sat together in one compartment, all eight of them. Fittingly, it was the compartment the Marauders had met in. When they arrived at the train station, tears were falling freely from all those present.

"I'll miss you," Lily managed to say as she hugged Mary, Marlene, and Della tightly. "Don't forget to visit me," she told them.

The boys abandoned all shame at public displays of affection. They hugged each other openly and tightly, though their hugs were masculine.

Lily and James held hands as they walked through the barrier that separated Platform 9 ¾ from the rest of the Muggle world.

"Do you realize," James said slowly, "that the next time we cross that wall will be with our own kids?"

Lily stared at him. The thought had never even occurred to her. "That's scary," she said quietly.

James nodded. "It's frightening. We're ancient, Kooks. But that's okay." He squeezed her hand tightly. "We'll be fine."

They smiled at each other for a moment, thinking of their plans. James was going to drop Lily off before heading home to see his parents. Then he was planning on moving in with Sirius for a bit.

As they stood in the parking lot, watching their friends set off in their own cars to their own homes, Lily spoke with borrowed words. "Parting is such sweet sorrow," she said quietly.

* * *

**Author's Note:** All good things come to an end. And this is mine.

There are so many people I'm extremely grateful to. If I had the time, I'd name all of them. But since I clearly lack it, I'm going to just name a few. Please don't feel bad if you're not named. Your advice and reviews were equally appreciated.

Lexie-H, naughty-sphinx, StArZiLL, GlindaFied26, Four and Twenty Blackbirds, rani singala, Pyromaniac-Girl, stardust718, xSiriusxPotterx, ReadingRobyn, and Jessiquie, I am so grateful for all of your reviews and comments. They helped inspire me and keep me writing.

_"The time has come," the Walrus said,  
"To talk of many things:  
Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax--  
Of cabbages--and kings--  
And why the sea is boiling hot--  
And whether pigs have wings."  
The Walrus and the Oyster by Lewis Carroll_


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